Hostname: page-component-cb9f654ff-lqqdg Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-09-05T12:17:32.629Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

P.063 Pediatric status dystonicus: 10-year experience at a single tertiary children’s hospital

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 July 2025

DJ Peacock
Affiliation:
(Vancouver)*
K Vithlani
Affiliation:
(Kingston)*
GA Clarke
Affiliation:
(Vancouver)
M Patel
Affiliation:
(Vancouver)
G Horvath
Affiliation:
(Vancouver)
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

Background: Status dystonicus is characterized by frequent or prolonged severe episodes of generalized dystonia. The phenomenology, etiology, and outcome is heterogenous and poorly characterized, making a standardized management approach challenging. We characterized demographics of children with status dystonicus in British Columbia admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU), management patterns, and outcomes. Methods: Clinical records at our PICU were searched via ICD-10 codes. We included cases admitted 2014-2024 who had dystonia severity grade 3-5, dystonia worse than baseline, and age >30 days old. Results: Seventy-nine records were screened; 41 admissions from 19 unique patients were included. Mean age was 7.6±4.2 years; 53% were female. Most unique patients had a genetic etiology (n=8, 42%). The presenting complaint per admission was often not dystonia (n=24, 59%); infection was the most common trigger (n=23, 56%) followed by pain (n=6, 15%). Patients received several anti-dystonia medications (mean 6.9±2.5), including clonidine, benzodiazepines, ketamine, and others. Mean PICU stay was 11.0±10.8 days; 37% had multiple PICU admissions. Two patients (4.9%) died from status dystonicus complications. Conclusions: Status dystonicus is a life-threatening emergency commonly triggered by pain and infection in patients with dystonia. Given the considerable morbidity and mortality, multi-disciplinary teams should consider standardized treatment guidelines for these complex patients.

Information

Type
Abstracts
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Canadian Neurological Sciences Federation