Neuroleptic malignant syndrome in trauma patient

Abstract

In recent years, there has been an increased use of neuroleptic agents in the unit care in trauma patients. There is a lack of prospective data, and most of the information is obtained from related cases. It is needed to have a high index of suspicion with regard to excluding neuroleptic malignant syndrome (NMS) in patients taking neuroleptics and presenting with hyperthermia, because of the potentially fatal consequences. It is a rare syndrome in the burn patient with a lack of proven treatments, and high morbidity and mortality are related. In the actual literature there are few related cases of NMS in the polytrauma patient, particularly in association with psychiatric conditions. In burn NMS is a rare complication with difficult diagnosis, because of the similar symptoms that can occur either in patients in the Burn Unit Care with other fatal conditions that are present in the acute phase response. Actually, there is no marker for the NMS, which difficult the early diagnosis and prognosis. The treatment still is based on case reports, with lack of clinical trials, but remain as standard and universally accepted. Besides that, the neural signaling of the NMS indicates possibilities for better understanding of the pathophysiology treatment protocol.

Keywords: Burn; Burn care; Injury; Neuroleptic; Syndrome; Trauma.