We report on a patient who developed acute hepatic failure despite intravenous N-acetyl cysteine therapy who was treated with the Molecular Adsorbents Recirculating System (MARS). She presented 20 hours after the ingestion of 13 g of acetaminophen. The MARS is based on albumin dialysis principle which can be applied for patients with acute poisoning from drugs that have high protein-binding capacity because of its ability to selectively remove from circulation protein-bound toxins. The clinical toxicologist should be consider this technology when treating patients with hepatic failure following acetaminophen poisoning.
Acetaminophen* ; Cysteine ; Dialysis ; Eating ; Humans ; Liver Failure ; Liver Failure, Acute* ; Mars ; Poisoning

We report on a patient who developed acute hepatic failure despite intravenous N-acetyl cysteine therapy who was treated with the Molecular Adsorbents Recirculating System (MARS). She presented 20 hours after the ingestion of 13 g of acetaminophen. The MARS is based on albumin dialysis principle which can be applied for patients with acute poisoning from drugs that have high protein-binding capacity because of its ability to selectively remove from circulation protein-bound toxins. The clinical toxicologist should be consider this technology when treating patients with hepatic failure following acetaminophen poisoning.
Acetaminophen* ; Cysteine ; Dialysis ; Eating ; Humans ; Liver Failure ; Liver Failure, Acute* ; Mars ; Poisoning

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness and the adverse events of high dose insulin/euglycemia therapy in acute calcium channel blocker (CCB) poisoning. METHODS: We developed a systematic search strategy and applied it to 4 electronic reference databases. We searched medical journals as well as the bibliographies of relevant articles. All forms of literature relevant to human use of high dose insulin for acute CCB poisoning were included. The literature search was conducted by two investigators in August, 2015 with publication language restricted to English and Korean. Case reports were divided between CCB overdose alone and multi-drug overdose including CCB. The effect and adverse event of high dose insulin and clinical outcome of each case were analyzed. RESULTS: Among 55 searched studies, 20 studies were included. A prospective study, a retrospective study, a systematic review study, and 17 case reports were identified. Case reports consisted of 11 CCB alone and 12 multidrug overdose cases including CCB. Although most cases described significant clinical improvements, one of them showed no beneficial effect. Several adverse events including hypoglycemia and hypokalemia were reported. No significant sequalae from adverse events was reported. CONCLUSION: Although there were many case reports demonstrating successful use of high dose insulin for CCB poisoning, the effect cannot be estimated due to a possibility of publication bias. Therefore, high dose insulin/euglycemia therapy might be considered adjunctive therapy in cases of CCB intoxication refractory for standard therapy.
Calcium Channel Blockers ; Calcium Channels* ; Calcium* ; Humans ; Hypoglycemia ; Hypokalemia ; Insulin ; Poisoning ; Prospective Studies ; Publication Bias ; Publications ; Research Personnel ; Retrospective Studies

Purpose: Acute nicotine poisoning by liquid nicotine in electronic cigarettes is becoming an increasing problem worldwide. The current systematic review aimed to determine the harm of acute nicotine poisoning by reviewing published case reports. Methods: An online literature search with PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, and KoreaMed database was performed to identify relevant studies addressing acute nicotine poisoning with electronic cigarettes. Two investigators searched the case reports written in English or Korean. Results: Twenty-six cases were included in this study. The routes of intoxication included ingestion in 18 cases, intravenous injection in three cases, subcutaneous injection in two cases, and ocular exposure in two cases. Ten cases had a cardiac arrest, and seven of them died. Seven out of 12 cases with intentional poisoning had a cardiac arrest. Nine children under 18 years were reported, and three of them had a cardiac arrest. Sixteen cases without a cardiac arrest recovered well, except for one case with sudden sensorineural hearing loss. Conclusion The authors reviewed the risks of electronic cigarette liquid in terms of acute poisoning through a systematic review.The nicotine solution of an e-cigarette can be life-threatening in cases of acute poisoning. Therefore, active emergency treatment with early recognition is necessary. In addition, various management methods and regulations for preventing acute nicotine poisoning, such as restriction of distribution and nicotine concentration, should be considered.

Purpose: Acute nicotine poisoning by liquid nicotine in electronic cigarettes is becoming an increasing problem worldwide. The current systematic review aimed to determine the harm of acute nicotine poisoning by reviewing published case reports. Methods: An online literature search with PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, and KoreaMed database was performed to identify relevant studies addressing acute nicotine poisoning with electronic cigarettes. Two investigators searched the case reports written in English or Korean. Results: Twenty-six cases were included in this study. The routes of intoxication included ingestion in 18 cases, intravenous injection in three cases, subcutaneous injection in two cases, and ocular exposure in two cases. Ten cases had a cardiac arrest, and seven of them died. Seven out of 12 cases with intentional poisoning had a cardiac arrest. Nine children under 18 years were reported, and three of them had a cardiac arrest. Sixteen cases without a cardiac arrest recovered well, except for one case with sudden sensorineural hearing loss. Conclusion The authors reviewed the risks of electronic cigarette liquid in terms of acute poisoning through a systematic review.The nicotine solution of an e-cigarette can be life-threatening in cases of acute poisoning. Therefore, active emergency treatment with early recognition is necessary. In addition, various management methods and regulations for preventing acute nicotine poisoning, such as restriction of distribution and nicotine concentration, should be considered.

No abstract available.
Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation* ; Education*

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to review the evidence comparing the efficacy and safety between L-carnitine and extracorporeal elimination therapy in the management of acute valproic acid L-carnitine vs Extracorporeal Elimination for Acute Valproic acid Intoxication METHODS: PubMed, Embase, Cochrane library, Web of Science, KoreaMed, KMbase, and KISS were searched, using the terms carnitine and valproic acid. All studies, regardless of design, reporting efficacy or safety endpoints were included. Reference citations from identified publications were reviewed. Both English and Korean languages were included. Two authors extracted primary data elements including poisoning severity, presenting features, clinical management, and outcomes. RESULTS: Thirty two articles including 33 cases were identified. Poisoning severity was classified as 3 mild, 11 moderate, and 19 severe cases. Nine cases were treated with L-carnitine while 24 cases received extracorporeal therapy without L-carnitine. All patients except one expired patient treated with hemodialysis recovered clinically and no adverse effects were noted. A case report comparing two patients who ingested the same amount of valproic acid showed increased ICU stay (3 vs 11 days) in case of delayed extracorporeal therapy. CONCLUSION: Published evidence comparing L-carnitine with extracorporeal therapy is limited. Based on the available evidence, it is reasonable to consider L-carnitine for patients with acute valproic acid overdose. In case of severe poisoning, extracorporeal therapy would also be considered in the early phase of treatment.
Carnitine* ; Humans ; Poisoning ; Renal Dialysis ; Valproic Acid*

Objective: The early prediction of multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) in trauma patients and provision ofprompt treatment may improve their outcomes. We investigated the efficacy of the mean platelet volume (MPV) for predictingMODS in cases of severe trauma. Methods: This retrospective, observational cohort study was performed with patients prospectively integrated in a criticalpathway of TRAUMA. We analyzed the severe trauma patients admitted to the emergency department (ED), based onthe Advanced Trauma Life Support guideline, between January 1, 2011 and May 31, 2017. The outcomes were developedfrom MODS at least 48 hours after ED admission. Results: A total of 348 patients were enrolled. An increase in the MPV at 12 hours (odds ratio [OR], 2.611; P<0.001) wasa strong independent predictor of MODS development. The increasing predictability of MODS was closely associatedwith an MPV at 12 hours>8.6 fL (OR, 4.831; P<0.001). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve(AUROC) value of the MPV at 12 hours (0.751; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.687-0.818; P<0.01) was not inferior thanthat of Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II score, injury severity score, lactate, and total CO2 for predictingMODS. Conclusion MPV was an independent predictor of MODS development in severe trauma patients. Emergency physicianscan use the MPV as an ancillary biomarker for predicting MODS.

Despite the identification of Acinetobacter baumannii isolates that demonstrate susceptibility to only colistin, this antimicrobial agent was not available in Korea until 2006. The present study examined the outcomes of patients with multidrug resistant (MDR) Acinetobacter species bloodstream infection and who were treated with or without colistin as part of their regimen. The colistin group was given colistin as part of therapy once colistin became available in 2006. The non-colistin group was derived from the patients who were treated with other antimicrobial regimens before 2006. Mortality within 30 days of the onset of bacteremia occurred for 11 of 31 patients in the colistin group and for 15 of 39 patients in the non-colistin group (35.5% vs 38.5%, respectively, P = 0.80). Renal dysfunction developed in 50.0% of the 20 evaluable patients in the colistin group, but in 28.6% of the 35 evaluable patients in the non-colistin group (P = 0.11). On multivariate analysis, only an Acute Physiological and Chronic Health Evaluation II score > or = 21 was associated with mortality at 30 days. This result suggests that administering colistin, although it is the sole microbiologically appropriate agent, does not influence the 30 day mortality of patients with a MDR Acinetobacter spp. bloodstream infection.
APACHE ; Acinetobacter/*drug effects/isolation & purification ; Acinetobacter Infections/*drug therapy/mortality ; Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Anti-Bacterial Agents/*therapeutic use ; Bacteremia/*drug therapy/mortality ; Child ; Colistin/administration & dosage/*therapeutic use ; Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial/*drug effects ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Republic of Korea ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk ; Treatment Outcome

No abstract available.
Median Nerve*