Özet:

Aim: Patient selection and management of rapid sequence intubation (RSI) application in the emergency department can be challenging for clinicians. In this study, we aimed to describe the demographic information, clinical characteristics, and medical conditions of the patients who underwent RSI in our hospital’s pediatric emergency department and to present patient management strategies. Methods: Cases between 1 month to 18 years old who underwent RSI in the emergency department between January 2021 and January 2022 were analyzed retrospectively. Results: Eleven patients; 7 girls (63,6%) and 4 boys (36,4%) were included in the study. The median age of the patients was 6(2-15) [minimum (min)-maximum (max)]. The median time from symptom onset to presentation was 120 minutes (min-max 15 minutes-2 weeks). RSI indications were trauma (n=5), intracranial mass (n=4), ventriculoperitoneal shunt dysfunction (n=1), and refractory status epilepticus (n=1). All patients had focal neurological deficits on examination. Glasgow Coma Scale median score was 8 (min-max 4-15). The first neuroimaging method was cranial tomography in ten (90.9%) patients. Intracranial hemorrhage was present in 45.4% (5 patients) of the patients. No complications were observed in any of the patients during the RSI application. One patient died due to intracranial hemorrhage and shunt dysfunction. Neurological deficits (dysarthria, gait disturbance, hemiparesis, and visual impairment) were detected in five patients during their first-month follow-up. Conclusion: This retrospective study identified critically ill children who were admitted to the emergency department with acute neurological symptoms and underwent RSI to prevent increased intracranial pressure and further brain damage.

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