Convulsions;

Can the elevation of AST and ALT in my patient with rhabdomyolysis be related to the muscle injury itself?

FA Manian MD, MPH, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Yes! Elevated serum AST and ALT in the setting of rhabdomyolysis is not uncommon and, at least in some cases, appears to be related to the skeletal muscle injury itself.1,2

In a study of 16 patients considered to have significant muscle necrosis due to extreme exercise, polymyositis or seizures without evidence of liver disease (eg, viral hepatitis, exposure to hepatotoxic drugs, heart failure, biliary tract disease, recent hypotension) AST and, to lesser degree, ALT was elevated. For extreme exercise, the median AST and ALT concentrations were 2,466 IU/L and 497 U/L, respectively, while for seizures these levels were 1,448 U/L and 383 U/L respectively.1  

Another study reported AST elevation (>40 U/L) in 93.1% of patients with rhabdomyolysis and ALT elevation (>40 U/L) in 75.0% of patients with serum creatine kinase ≥1000 U/L. 2  Further supporting a skeletal muscle origin for AST elevation was the finding that AST concentrations fell in parallel with CK drop during the first 6 days of hospitalization for rhabdomyolysis. It was posited that ALT concentrations dropped slower because of its longer serum half-life (47 hours vs 17 hours for AST).2 Despite these findings, concurrent liver injury as an additional source of AST or ALT elevation cannot be excluded.

Elevation of AST and ALT with muscle injury should not come as a surprise. AST is found in heart and skeletal muscle among many other organs. Even ALT which is considered more specific to liver is found in organs such as skeletal muscle, heart and kidney, though at lower concentrations.3

Bonus Pearl: Did you know that the first description of rhabdomyolysis in the literature involved English victims of crush injuries during World War II?2

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References

  1. Nathwani RA, Pais S, Reynolds TB, et al. Serum alanine aminotransferase in skeletal muscle diseases. Hepatology 2005;41:380-82. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15660433
  2. Weibrecht K, Dayno M, Darling C, et al. Liver aminotransferases are elevated with rhabdomyolysis in the absence of significant liver injury. J Med Toxicol 2010;6:294-300. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs13181-010-0075-9
  3. Giannini EG, Testa R, Savarino V. Liver enzyme alteration: a guidance for clinicians. CMAJ2005;172:367-79. Giannini EG, Testa R, Savarino V. Liver enzyme alteration: a guidance for clinicians. CMAJ 2005;172:367-79. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15684121
Can the elevation of AST and ALT in my patient with rhabdomyolysis be related to the muscle injury itself?

My patient with cocaine and alcohol addiction is admitted with repeated convulsions during which he seems totally conscious. What could I be missing?

FA Manian MD, MPH, , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Consider strychnine poisoning as a cause of recurrent generalized tonic clonic seizures and muscle spasm with clear sensorium either during or following the episode. 1-4 In contrast to the cortical source of most seizures, convulsions due to strychnine poisoning are due to the blocking of the action of spinal and brain-stem inhibitory neurons resulting in overwhelming muscle rigidity, not unlike that seen in tetanus.

Although strychnine was found in various tonics and cathartic agents and was a common cause of accidental death in children under 5 years of age in early 20th century, it is still used in various rodenticides and pesticides.3  Today, it may be used intentionally in suicide attempts as well as an adulterant in street drugs, such as amphetamines, heroin and especially cocaine. 1,3,5

The initial symptoms of strychnine poisoning include nervousness, a hyperalert state, and confusion. These symptoms may be followed by severe muscle rigidity throughout the body often in response to minimal stimuli, such as physical contact, bright lights, noise and medical procedures.3, 6,7  Interestingly, strychnine also has an excitatory action on the medulla and enhances the sensation of touch, smell, hearing and sight.6  The cause of death is usually respiratory arrest due to prolonged muscle spasms, often complicated by rhabdomyolysis and associated renal failure.1

So among the numerous causes of seizures, think of strychnine as another potential cause when there is no concurrent loss of consciousness or the expected postictal state.

Bonus Pearl: Did you know that strychnine may be present in street drugs with a variety of names such as “back breakers”, “homicide”, “red rock opium”, “red stuff” and “spike”? 7

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References

  1. Wood DM, Webser E, Martinez D, et al. Case report: survival after deliberate strychnine self-poisoning, with toxicokinetic data. Critical Care 2002;6:456-9. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC130147/
  2. Santhosh GJ, Joseph W, Thomas M. Strychnine poisoning. J Assoc Physicians India 2003;51:736. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14621058
  3. Libenson MH, Young JM. Case records of Massachusetts General Hospital. A 16 years boy with an altered mental status and muscle rigidity. N Engl J Med 2001;344:1232-9. https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJM200104193441608
  4. Smith BA. Strychnine poisoning. J Emerg Med 1990;8: 321-25. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2197324
  5. O’Callaghan WG, Ward M, Lavelle P, et al. Unusual strychnine poisoning and its treatment: report of eight cases. B Med J 1982;285:478. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1499293/
  6. Burn DJ, Tomson CRV, Seviour J, et al. Strychnine poisoning as an unusual cause of convulsions. Postgrad Med J 1989;65:563-64. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2602253
  7. Radosavljevic J, Jeffries WS, Peter JV. Intentional strychnine use and overdose—an entity of the past? Crit Care Resusc 2006;8: 260-61. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16930120

 

My patient with cocaine and alcohol addiction is admitted with repeated convulsions during which he seems totally conscious. What could I be missing?

How do I interpret serum ammonia levels in hospitalized patients with altered mental status?

FA Manian MD, MPH, , , , , , , , Leave a comment

The primary source of ammonia in the blood is the intestine, where bacterial break down of urea leads to ammonia which is converted back to urea by the liver before it is excreted by the kidneys and colon. Besides hepatic dysfunction and inborn errors of metabolism, portosystemic shunts, urinary diversion, parenteral nutrition, multiple myeloma, distal renal tubular acidosis, drugs (e.g. sodium valproate), and convulsive seizures may also be associated with elevated serum ammonia levels (1).

In end-stage liver disease (ESLD), elevated serum ammonia level is neither very sensitive nor specific for the presence or the degree of hepatic encephalopathy (HE). In fact, over 2/3 of patients with ESLD without encephalopathy may have elevated serum ammonia levels (2).

In contrast, in patients with acute liver failure, an elevated serum ammonia level may be of prognostic value, with arterial ammonia levels >200 ug/dL associated with cerebral herniation in such patients (2).

In patients without suspected liver disease, measuring serum ammonia levels as part of a broader workup for mental status changes is reasonable, but just as in patients with ESLD, hyperammonia-related altered mental status should remain a diagnosis of exclusion.

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References

  1. Hawkes ND, Thomas GAO, Jurewicz A, et al. Non-hepatic hyperammonaemia: an important, potentially reversible cause of encephalopathy. Postgrad Med J 2001;77:717-722. https://pmj.bmj.com/content/77/913/717.short  
  2. Elgouhari HM, O’Shea R. What is the utility of measuring the serum ammonia level in patients with altered mental status? Cleveland Clin J Med 2009;76: 252-4.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19339641

Disclosures: The listed questions and answers are solely the responsibility of the author and do not necessarily represent the official views of Mercy Hospital-St. Louis or its affiliate healthcare centers. Although every effort has been made to provide accurate information, the author is far from being perfect. The reader is urged to verify the content of the material with other sources as deemed appropriate and exercise clinical judgment in the interpretation and application of the information provided herein. No responsibility for an adverse outcome or guarantees for a favorable clinical result is assumed by the author. Thank you!

How do I interpret serum ammonia levels in hospitalized patients with altered mental status?