Case Report: Respiratory paralysis associated with polymyxin B therapy

Yachan Ning; Yanqi Chu; You Wu; Ying Huang; Chunmei Wang; Li Jiang

doi:10.3389/fphar.2022.963140

Case Report: Respiratory paralysis associated with polymyxin B therapy

Front Pharmacol. 2022 Aug 29:13:963140. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2022.963140. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Yachan Ning¹, Yanqi Chu², You Wu², Ying Huang³, Chunmei Wang¹, Li Jiang¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Intensive Care Medicine, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
² Department of Pharmacy, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
³ Department of Urology Surgery, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.

Abstract

Polymyxin B (PMB) and colistin are bactericidal polypeptide antibiotics discovered in 1947 and 1949 for the treatment of gram-negative bacterial infections. Polymyxin was used clinically in the 1950s, but it was gradually replaced by other antibiotics in the 1980s because of its high nephrotoxicity and neurotoxicity. In recent years, the increase of multidrug-resistant negative bacteria has led to the resurgence of polymyxin use. However, its side effects are not clear. Respiratory paralysis caused by PMB-related neuromuscular blockade is a rare but potentially fatal effect. We report a case of respiratory paralysis probably caused by polymyxin B infusion.

Keywords: colistin; neuromuscular blockage; neurotoxicity; polymyxin B; respiratory paralysis.

Publication types

Case Reports