Cerebrovascular complications in pediatric intensive care unit

Cerebrovascular complications are being frequently recognized in the pediatric intensive care unit in the recent few years. The epidemiology and risk factors for pediatric stroke are different from that of the adults. The incidence of ischemic stroke is almost slightly more than that of hemorrhagic stroke. The list of diagnostic causes is increasing with the availability of newer imaging modalities and laboratory tests. The diagnostic work up depends on the age of the child and the rapidity of presentation. Magnetic resonance imaging, computerized tomography and arteriography and venography are the mainstay of diagnosis and to differentiate between ischemic and hemorrhagic events. Very sophisticated molecular diagnostic tests are required in a very few patients. There are very few pediatric studies on the management of stroke. General supportive management is as important as the specific treatment. Most of the treatment guidelines and suggestions are extrapolated from the adult studies. Few guidelines are available for the use of anticoagulants and thrombolytic agents in pediatric patients. So, our objective was to review the available literature on the childhood stroke and to provide an insight into the subject for the pediatricians and critical care providers.

Antiplatelet drugs: American College of Chest Physicians Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines (8th Edition)

This article about currently available antiplatelet drugs is part of the Antithrombotic and Thrombolytic Therapy: American College of Chest Physicians Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines (8th Edition). It describes the mechanism of action, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics of aspirin, reversible cyclooxygenase inhibitors, thienopyridines, and integrin alphaIIbbeta3 receptor antagonists. The relationships among dose, efficacy, and safety are thoroughly discussed, with a mechanistic overview of randomized clinical trials. The article does not provide specific management recommendations; however, it does highlight important practical aspects related to antiplatelet therapy, including the optimal dose of aspirin, the variable balance of benefits and hazards in different clinical settings, and the issue of interindividual variability in response to antiplatelet drugs.

Antiplatelet agents and perioperative bleeding

PURPOSE

To briefly review the risks, in patients presenting for surgery, associated with the available antiplatelet agents, and to present the principles that should guide the evaluation of these risks and how to manage them.

METHODS

A narrative review of the current medical literature in English and French.

MAIN FINDINGS

Antiplatelet agents [mainly acetylsalicylic acid, clopidogrel and glycoprotein (GP) IIb/IIIa inhibitors] are used increasingly to prevent arterial thrombosis. Clinicians are confronted with the hemorrhagic risk associated with the continuation of antiplatelet agents throughout surgery or, conversely, with the thrombotic risk associated with their discontinuation. Most experts recommend surgery while maintaining acetylsalicylic acid for most vascular procedures and in several additional settings where the bleeding risk has been shown (or is likely) to be low. It is commonly recommended that clopidogrel be stopped five days before surgery to allow replacement of half the platelet pool. This approach has been associated with thrombotic events in patients waiting for urgent myocardial revascularization. In this context, aprotinin may reduce blood losses and transfusion requirements. Withdrawal of the competitive GPIIb/IIIa inhibitors at the beginning of surgery will decrease the risk of bleeding, less so for abciximab owing to its avid binding to platelet receptors. Platelets should not be transfused prophylactically, but only to those few patients with abnormal bleeding thought to be related to the persisting effect of antiplatelet therapy.

CONCLUSIONS

Unfortunately, data regarding the management of antiplatelet agent-treated patients undergoing surgery, especially non-cardiovascular, are scarce. Further clinical trials must be conducted to guide the clinical management of these patients.

Antithrombotic Therapy in Children*

This article about antithrombotic therapy in children is part of the 7th American College of Chest Physicians Conference on Antithrombotic and Thrombolytic Therapy: Evidence-Based Guidelines. Grade 1 recommendations are strong and indicate that the benefits do, or do not, outweigh the risks, burden, and costs. Grade 2 suggests that individual patients' values may lead to different choices (for a full understanding of the grading see Guyatt et al, CHEST 2004; 126:179S-187S). Among the key recommendations in this article are the following. In neonates with venous thromboembolism (VTE), we suggest treatment with either unfractionated heparin or low-molecular-weight heparin (LMWH), or radiographic monitoring and anticoagulation therapy if extension occurs (Grade 2C). We suggest that clinicians not use thrombolytic therapy for treating VTE in neonates, unless there is major vessel occlusion that is causing the critical compromise of organs or limbs (Grade 2C). For children (ie, > 2 months of age) with an initial VTE, we recommend treatment with i.v. heparin or LMWH (Grade 1C+). We suggest continuing anticoagulant therapy for idiopathic thromboembolic events (TEs) for at least 6 months using vitamin K antagonists (target international normalized ratio [INR], 2.5; INR range, 2.0 to 3.0) or alternatively LMWH (Grade 2C). We suggest that clinicians not use thrombolytic therapy routinely for VTE in children (Grade 2C). For neonates and children requiring cardiac catheterization (CC) via an artery, we recommend i.v. heparin prophylaxis (Grade 1A). We suggest the use of heparin doses of 100 to 150 U/kg as a bolus and that further doses may be required in prolonged procedures (both Grade 2 B). For prophylaxis for CC, we recommend against aspirin therapy (Grade 1B). For neonates and children with peripheral arterial catheters in situ, we recommend the administration of low-dose heparin through a catheter, preferably by continuous infusion to prolong the catheter patency (Grade 1A). For children with a peripheral arterial catheter-related TE, we suggest the immediate removal of the catheter (Grade 2C). For prevention of aortic thrombosis secondary to the use of umbilical artery catheters in neonates, we suggest low-dose heparin infusion (1 to 5 U/h) (Grade 2A). In children with Kawasaki disease, we recommend therapy with aspirin in high doses initially (80 to 100 mg/kg/d during the acute phase, for up to 14 days) and then in lower doses (3 to 5 mg/kg/d for > or = 7 weeks) [Grade 1C+], as well as therapy with i.v. gammaglobulin within 10 days of the onset of symptoms (Grade 1A).

Platelet-Active Drugs: The Relationships Among Dose, Effectiveness, and Side Effects

This article discusses platelet active drugs as part of the Seventh American College of Chest Physicians Conference on Antithrombotic and Thrombolytic Therapy: Evidence-Based Guidelines. New data on antiplatelet agents include the following: (1) the role of aspirin in primary prevention has been the subject of recommendations based on the assessment of cardiovascular risk; (2) an increasing number of reports suggest a substantial interindividual variability in the response to antiplatelet agents, and various phenomena of "resistance" to the antiplatelet effects of aspirin and clopidogrel; (3) the benefit/risk profile of currently available glycoprotein IIb/IIIa antagonists is substantially uncertain for patients with acute coronary syndromes who are not routinely scheduled for early revascularization; (4) there is an expanding role for the combination of aspirin and clopidogrel in the long-term management of high-risk patients; and (5) the cardiovascular effects of selective and nonselective cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitors have been the subject of increasing attention.

Effects of ticlopidine or ticlopidine plus aspirin on platelet aggregation and ATP release in normal volunteers: why aspirin improves ticlopidine antiplatelet activity

Aspirin and ticlopidine are used to prevent arterial thrombosis. In some clinical settings ticlopidine is administered with aspirin for improving antithrombotic effect. We administered aspirin (100 mg/day), ticlopidine (500 mg/day), or ticlopidine and aspirin for 7 days to healthy volunteers. Platelet aggregation and ATP release induced by sodium arachidonate, ADP, or a combination of both were measured. Sodium arachidonate (0.25 mmol/L), which produces no platelet aggregation, combined with adenosine diphosphate (1 mumol/L), which produced a reversible platelet aggregation of 20% after ticlopidine, resulted in a synergistic platelet aggregation response in normal (74.6 +/- 9.2%) and in ticlopidine platelet-rich plasma (59.1% +/- 14.9%, p < 0.0001). Synergism after sodium arachidonate (0.75 mmol/L) plus adenosine diphosphate (4 mumol/L) fell from 75.8% +/- 11.0% and 59.1% +/- 15.6% after ticlopidine or aspirin, respectively, to 14.8% +/- 18.0% (p < 0.0001) after ticlopidine plus aspirin. Aspirin and ticlopidine alone did not inhibit adenosine triphosphate release as thoroughly as did aspirin plus ticlopidine. Aspirin or ticlopidine does not adequately prevent platelet activity as ticlopidine plus aspirin do. Addition of aspirin to treatment with ticlopidine improves their antiplatelet activity and better results could be obtained in arterial thrombotic prevention strategies.