Hypocalcemic Seizure Due to Vitamin D Deficiency.

AIM: To emphasize the importance of vitamin D supplementation. BACKGROUND: The incidence of vitamin D deficiency has been increasing worldwide, probably due to decreased exposure to sunlight and unbalanced diet. Severe hypocalcemia following vitamin D deficiency is rather uncommon, and this leading to seizures in adults is a rare scenario. CASE DESCRIPTION: This is the case of a 70-year-old female, a known case of coronary artery disease, who presented with one episode of seizure. Computed tomography of her brain revealed diffuse age-related atrophic changes, and electroencephalogram showed diffuse cerebral dysfunction. She was found to have severe hypocalcemia with secondary hyperparathyroidism due to vitamin D deficiency. Vitamin D bolus was given along with calcium correction, following which she improved. CONCLUSION: There are a few reports of hypocalcemic seizures among children; however, the incidence is rare among adults. Calcium and vitamin D supplementation forms the mainstay of treatment. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Hypocalcemic seizure is uncommon, especially among adults. Vitamin D deficiency resulting in hypocalcemic seizure, to the best of our knowledge, is an unreported scenario. This case highlights the importance of vitamin D supplementation in those with reduced sunlight exposure. HOW TO CITE THIS ARTICLE: Manappallil RG, Krishnan R, Veetil PP, Nambiar H, Karadan U, Anil R, et al. Hypocalcemic Seizure Due to Vitamin D Deficiency. Indian J Crit Care Med 2020;24(9):882-884.

Superior vena cava syndrome due to mediastinal Gardner fibroma presenting as syncope.

Superior vena cava (SVC) syndrome refers to the clinical manifestation due to an obstruction in the SVC; resulting in decreased venous return from the head, neck and upper extremities. The obstruction can occur either due to tumour invasion of the vessel wall with associated thrombus or due to vessel wall compression by the tumour mass. The patient being reported is a young male who presented with recurrent episodes of syncope and was found to have mediastinal Gardner fibroma causing SVC syndrome. Gardner fibroma is a benign soft tissue lesion; and its occurrence in the mediastinum resulting in SVC syndrome has not been reported yet.

Pyopericardium progressing to tamponade in a patient with immune thrombocytopenia.

Pericardial effusion can develop during any stage of pericarditis, and small effusions that appear rapidly can cause cardiac tamponade. Pyopericardium is a rare aetiology for tamponade. This is a case of an elderly diabetic lady, on steroid therapy for immune thrombocytopenia, who presented with fever and acute dyspnoea. She developed cardiac tamponade due to pyopericardium with Staphylococcus as the causative organism. Staphylococcus pyopericardium, in the absence of a primary focus of infection, progressing to tamponade is an uncommon scenario.