Elevated CK-MB mass and plasma brain-type natriuretic peptide concentrations following convulsive seizures in children and adolescents: possible evidence of subtle cardiac dysfunction.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the presence of myocardial injury during convulsive seizures in children and adolescents by determining serum concentrations of cardiac troponin I (cTnI), creatine kinase-MB mass (CK-MB mass), and plasma brain-type natriuretic peptide (BNP). METHODS: Thirty-one children (20 boys; mean age, 6.6 +/- 5.34 years) with convulsive seizures and 50 healthy children were enrolled. Serum cTnI, CK-MB mass, and plasma BNP concentrations were analyzed 12 h after the seizure and repeated 7 days thereafter in the patient group and obtained one time in the control group. RESULTS: The difference between serum concentrations of cTnI obtained 12 h and 7 days after the seizure was not statistically significant. cTnI levels 12 h postictal and those in control subjects also were not significantly different. CK-MB mass and BNP at the 12th h were higher than those obtained on the 7th day (p < 0.05 and p < 0.001, respectively). Children with seizures had increased levels of CK-MB mass and BNP 12 h after seizure than control subjects (p < 0.05 and p < 0.001, respectively). The results of electrocardiography (ECG) recordings, which were obtained up to 30 min after seizure activity, were completely normal in patients with seizure. CONCLUSION: Normal cTnI levels are not indicative of overt myocardial necrosis in patients with seizures. However, markedly elevated BNP concentrations together with elevated CK-MB mass levels do suggest subtle cardiac dysfunction in patients with seizure, and further large-scale studies are warranted.

Case report: seizures in a child caused by a large venous angioma.

Cerebral venous angioma is a congenital anomaly of the medullary vein, the vessel that drains into the transparenchymal venous stem. This lesion is also referred to as a developmental venous anomaly. A few reports in the literature have documented developmental venous anomaly-related epilepsy, neurologic deficits, and intracranial hemorrhage. A 3-year-old boy was referred to our hospital after he sustained an afebrile, tonic-clonic, focal seizure of 15 minutes' duration that affected his right arm, leg, and eyebrow. Cerebral digital subtraction angiography showed a bilateral, large periventricular developmental venous anomaly. This report describes the clinical and radiologic findings for this large venous angioma that caused seizures in a child.

Hepatic abscess: a rare manifestation of brucellosis in children.

Hepatic abscess caused by brucellosis is extremely rare in children. We report the case of a 5-year-old girl in whom an abscess of the liver developed during an episode of acute brucellosis. To our knowledge, this is the second reported case of hepatic abscess caused by brucellosis in a child.

Intracranial hemorrhages due to late-type vitamin K deficiency bleeding.

OBJECTS: Vitamin K deficiency bleeding (VKDB) represents a clinical picture characterized by bleedings due to insufficient levels of vitamin-K-dependent hemostatic factors. VKDB can be classified into three groups as early, classic, and late according to time of occurrence. Late-type VKDB has particular importance due to frequent intracranial hemorrhages that lead to high mortality and morbidity. In our study, we aimed to emphasize the importance of vitamin K prophylaxis in prevention of late-type VKDB. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data of 12 infants treated for intracranial hemorrhage due to late-type VKDB in Baskent University Hospitals between June 1998 and June 2005 have been analyzed. RESULTS: The ages of patients ranged between 25 and 90 days. Five were born in the hospital and seven were born at home. None of the infants born at home received vitamin K prophylaxis. Hemorrhages were classified as intraparenchymal in 58.33%, subarachnoid in 50.00%, subdural in 50.00%, intraventricular in 41.66%, and epidural in 8.33% according to cranial computerized tomography findings. Surgery was performed in seven cases (58.33%). A total of six patients died (50.00%). Three of the deaths were from the surgery-performed group. CONCLUSION: All newborns should receive vitamin K prophylaxis to prevent bleeding due to vitamin K deficiency. Symptoms of any predisposing disease and warning bleeds must be noticed early and additional doses of vitamin K should be administered, if required.