Tag Archives: Fentanyl

Effectiveness of Pharmacological Therapies for Intracranial Hypertension in Children With Severe Traumatic Brain Injury-Results From an Automated Data Collection System Time-Synched to Drug Administration.

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Shein SL, et al. Effectiveness of Pharmacological Therapies for Intracranial Hypertension in Children With Severe Traumatic Brain Injury-Results From an Automated Data Collection System Time-Synched to Drug Administration. Pediatr Crit Care Med. 2016 Mar; 17(3):236-45.

OBJECTIVES: To describe acute cerebral hemodynamic effects of medications commonly used to treat intracranial hypertension in children with traumatic brain injury. Currently, data supporting the efficacy of these medications are insufficient.

DESIGN: In this prospective observational study, intracranial hypertension (intracranial pressure ≥ 20 mm Hg for > 5 min) was treated by clinical protocol. Administration times of medications for intracranial hypertension (fentanyl, 3% hypertonic saline, mannitol, and pentobarbital) were prospectively recorded and synchronized with an automated database that collected intracranial pressure and cerebral perfusion pressure every 5 seconds. Intracranial pressure crises confounded by external stimulation or mechanical ventilator adjustments were excluded. Mean intracranial pressure and cerebral perfusion pressure from epochs following drug administration were compared with baseline values using Kruskal-Wallis analysis of variance and Dunn test. Frailty modeling was used to analyze the time to intracranial pressure crisis resolution. Mixed-effect models compared intracranial pressure and cerebral perfusion pressure 5 minutes after the medication versus baseline and rates of treatment failure.

SETTING: A tertiary care children’s hospital.

PATIENTS: Children with severe traumatic brain injury (Glasgow Coma Scale score ≤ 8).

INTERVENTIONS: None.

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: We analyzed 196 doses of fentanyl, hypertonic saline, mannitol, and pentobarbital administered to 16 children (median: 12 doses per patient). Overall, intracranial pressure significantly decreased following the administration of fentanyl, hypertonic saline, and pentobarbital. After controlling for administration of multiple medications, intracranial pressure was decreased following hypertonic saline and pentobarbital administration; cerebral perfusion pressure was decreased following fentanyl and was increased following hypertonic saline administration. After adjusting for significant covariates (including age, Glasgow Coma Scale score, and intracranial pressure), hypertonic saline was associated with a two-fold faster resolution of intracranial hypertension than either fentanyl or pentobarbital. Fentanyl was significantly associated with the most frequent treatment failure.

CONCLUSIONS: Intracranial pressure decreased after multiple drug administrations, but hypertonic saline may warrant consideration as the first-line drug for treating intracranial hypertension, as it was associated with the most favorable cerebral hemodynamics and fastest resolution of intracranial hypertension.

Fentanyl and Midazolam Are Ineffective in Reducing Episodic Intracranial Hypertension in Severe Pediatric Traumatic Brain Injury.

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Welch TP, et al. Fentanyl and Midazolam Are Ineffective in Reducing Episodic Intracranial Hypertension in Severe Pediatric Traumatic Brain Injury. Crit Care Med. 2016 Apr;44(4):809-18.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the clinical effectiveness of bolus-dose fentanyl and midazolam to treat episodic intracranial hypertension in children with severe traumatic brain injury.

DESIGN: Retrospective cohort.

SETTING: PICU in a university-affiliated children’s hospital level I trauma center.

PATIENTS: Thirty-one children 0-18 years of age with severe traumatic brain injury (Glasgow Coma Scale score of ≤ 8) who received bolus doses of fentanyl and/or midazolam for treatment of episodic intracranial hypertension.

INTERVENTIONS: None.

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The area under the curve from high-resolution intracranial pressure-time plots was calculated to represent cumulative intracranial hypertension exposure: area under the curve for intracranial pressure above 20 mm Hg (area under the curve-intracranial hypertension) was calculated in 15-minute epochs before and after administration of fentanyl and/or midazolam for the treatment of episodic intracranial hypertension. Our primary outcome measure, the difference between predrug and postdrug administration epochs (Δarea under the curve-intracranial hypertension), was calculated for all occurrences. We examined potential covariates including age, injury severity, mechanism, and time after injury; time after injury correlated with Δarea under the curve-intracranial hypertension. In a mixed-effects model, with patient as a random effect, drug/dose combination as a fixed effect, and time after injury as a covariate, intracranial hypertension increased after administration of fentanyl and/or midazolam (overall aggregate mean Δarea under the curve-intracranial hypertension = +17 mm Hg × min, 95% CI, 0-34 mm Hg × min; p = 0.04). The mean Δarea under the curve-intracranial hypertension increased significantly after administration of high-dose fentanyl (p = 0.02), low-dose midazolam (p = 0.006), and high-dose fentanyl plus low-dose midazolam (0.007). Secondary analysis using age-dependent thresholds showed no significant impact on cerebral perfusion pressure deficit (mean Δarea under the curve-cerebral perfusion pressure).

CONCLUSIONS: Bolus dosing of fentanyl and midazolam fails to reduce the intracranial hypertension burden when administered for episodic intracranial hypertension. Paradoxically, we observed an overall increase in intracranial hypertension burden following drug administration, even after accounting for within-subject effects and time after injury. Future work is needed to confirm these findings in a prospective study design.