Concurrent severe hepatotoxicity and agranulocytosis induced by Polygonum multiflorum:A case report

BACKGROUND Various types of drug-induced liver injury are induced by Polygonum multiflorum(PM);however,it rarely causes neutropenia.Herein,we report the case of a 65-year-old woman with concurrent severe hepatotoxicity and agranulocytosis induced by PM.CASE SUMMARY A 65-year-old woman reported with severe hepatotoxicity and agranulocytosis 17 d after ingestion of PM.The results of the Roussel Uclaf Causality Assessment Method demonstrated a highly probable relationship between hepatotoxicity and PM,with a total score of 10.The Naranjo algorithm results indicated that agranulocytosis had a probable relationship with PM,with an overall score of 6.Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor(for once),a steroid,compound glycyrrhizin,and polyene phosphatidylcholine therapy were initiated.After 15 d of treatment,there was a gradual improvement in liver biochemistry,leukocytes,and neutrophils levels.CONCLUSION Concurrent hepatotoxicity and agranulocytosis are rare and critical adverse drug reactions of PM,which should be highly valued.

Agranulocytosis following injection of inactivated Japanese encephalitis vaccine(Vero cell):A case report

BACKGROUND Japanese encephalitis virus(JEV),a mosquito borne flavivirus,is the leading cause of viral encephalitis in Asia,in terms of frequency and severity.JEV infection is thought to confer lifelong immunity.With the near eradication of poliomyelitis,JEV is now the continent’s leading cause of childhood viral neurologic infection and disability.The most common clinical manifestation of JEV infection is acute encephalitis,and currently there is no specific antiviral therapy.Japanese Encephalitis Vaccine(JE-VC)is an effective prevention measure,including JE-VC,Live(JE-MB),and Inactivated JE-VC.CASE SUMMARY A 9-mo-old girl received injection of Inactivated JE-VC(Vero cell)(Liaoning Chengda,batch number 201611B17)on August 31,2017.On that night,she developed a fever with the body temperature up to 38.5°C,for which Ibuprofen Suspension Drops 1.25 mL was given as antipyretic treatment.On September 1,the patient developed apocleisis,and her parents noticed herpes in her oral cavity.The patient was sent to our hospital on September 3.Physical examination led to a diagnosis of herpetic stomatitis,for which Stomatitis Spray 1 puff,tid,Kangfuxin Liquid 2 mL,tid,and vitamin B20.5 tablet,tid,were prescribed.Routine blood tests for low fever on September 6,2017 revealed an absolute neutrophil count(ANC)of 0.62×109/L,hemoglobin(Hb)of 109 g/L,and platelet count(PLT)of 308×10^(12)/L,and the tests were monitored regularly thereafter.The patient was followed until July 26,2020,when routine blood tests revealed ANC 1.72×109/L,Hb 138 g/L,and PLT 309×1012/L,indicating that the neutropenia count had normalized.CONCLUSION This report attempts to bring to clinical attention that Inactivated JE-VC(Vero cell)might cause prolonged granulocytopenia or even agranulocytosis.

Disseminated Fusarium bloodstream infection in a child with acute myeloid leukemia:A case report

BACKGROUND Disseminated Fusarium is rare in healthy children.Children with hematological tumors may have secondary fungal infections,including Fusarium infections,which are due to tumor bone marrow infiltration or prolonged bone marrow suppression after chemotherapy.Because of the lack of typical clinical manifestations and effective antifungal drugs,early diagnosis and treatment of the disease are difficult,and the prognosis is poor.CASE SUMMARY The patient in this case was a 13-year-old female child with rash and fever as the first symptoms.She had the characteristics of the four stages of skin that are typical of Fusarium infection.She was diagnosed with disseminated Fusarium infection through skin biopsy and blood culture and diagnosed with Fusarium solani infection based on the morphological characteristics of the blood culture.After treatment with liposome amphotericin B combined with voriconazole,the child recovered.CONCLUSION This case highlights that for children with secondary agranulocytosis after receiving chemotherapy for hematological malignancies,once typical abnormal skin damage is found,the possibility of Fusarium infection should be considered,and voriconazole alone or in combination with polyenes may be the most effective anti-Fusarium drugs.Amphotericin B,the traditional drug of disseminated Fusarium disease,has a high mortality rate,and it is not recommended to use it alone.Adequate neutrophil counts are essential for the treatment of disseminated Fusarium bloodstream infection.

Clinical Characteristics of Bloodstream Infections in Pediatric Acute Leukemia： A Single-center Experience with 231 Patients

Background：Acute leukemia is the most common pediatric hematological malignancy.Bloodstream infections （BSIs） are severe complications in these patients during chemotherapy.This study aimed to explore the clinical presentation and etiology of BSI,as well as the common sites of infection,and to provide a basis for the rational regarding antibiotic use.Methods：We performed a retrospective chart review of all pediatric patients who had acute leukemia accompanied by a BSI in our hospital from December 2011 to September 2015.All patients were selected based on clinical presentation and had to have at least one positive blood culture for inclusion.The basic clinical characteristics,blood culture results,and antimicrobial susceptibilities were analyzed.Results：All 231 patients had a fever;of them,12 patients continued to have a fever.Twenty-five patients had nonremitting （NR） leukemia,and 206 patients achieved complete remission （CR）.Differences in the duration of fever between the NR and CR groups were significant （9.6 ＆#177; 7.9 vs.5.1 ＆#177; 3.8 days,P =0.016）.One hundred and eighty patients had agranulocytosis.Differences in fever duration between the agranulocytosis and nonagranulocytosis groups were significant （6.2 ＆#177; 5.1 vs.4.1 ＆#177; 2.6 days,P =0.001）.The other sites of infection in these 231 patients were the lung,mouth,digestive tract,and rectum.Blood culture comprised 2635 samples.There were 619 samples,which were positive.Of the 619 positive blood culture samples,59.9% had Gram-negative bacteria,39.3% had Gram-positive bacteria,and 0.8% had fungus.The primary pathogens were Pseudomonas aeruginosa,Enterobactercloacae,Escherichia coli,and Klebsiella pneumoniae.Of these 231 patients,217 patients were cured.The effective treatment ratio was 94%.Conclusions：Gram-negative bacteria were the main pathogenic bacteria in patients with acute leukemia in our center.NR primary illness,agranulocytosis,and drug-resistant pathogenic bacteria were all risk factors for poor prognosis.