Caustic ingestion and oesophageal damage in children: Clinical spectrum and feeding practices

Abstract

Alkali ingestion was associated with severe burns and oesophageal stricture. The presence of oesophageal strictures and dysphagia required changes in the feeding practices in order to maintain an adequate nutritional status and/or to complete their DRI.

Cost-Effectiveness of the Sucralfate Technetium 99m isotope Labelled Esophageal Scan to Assessesophageal Injury in Children after Caustic Ingestion

“…While in the literature there is still doubt on this issue, 9,10 we found that alkaline substances were related to longer hospital stay, and thus probably caused more severe injury. However, alkaline substances did not have a significantly more damaged mucosa than acidic or neutral substances.…”

“…8,9 There is still doubt which of the two, acidic or alkali ingestions, result in more severe injuries. 9,10 The main purpose of this review report was to calculate the cost-effectiveness of a sucralfate scan as compared with standard endoscopy. A secondary aim was to determine the positive predictive value of the sucralfate scan with that offibreoptic upper gastrointestinal endoscopy.…”

Caustic Ingestion in Children

“…Family organization classiied as extended implies crowded living conditions and enables both parents to work outside home while other family members take care of their children [18]. Other authors have reported that unsafe homes where safety rules regarding caustic substances are lacking have been identiied as a substantial risk factor for CI in children [1,9,13,17,21]. Sarioglu-Buke et al found that children from families where both parents with low educational level and low socioeconomic status had a higher risk for a CI event.…”

“…An endoscopy plus a barium swallow were repeated after 2 or 3 weeks of the CI to assess mucosal healing and to look for strictures; mucosal healing occurred in all cases but 64.5% had oesophageal stricture [21]. Clinical, endoscopic and image data of our cases are summarized in Table 2.…”

“…It is essential to highlight that most of these products ingested by children were kept in containers that had no warning labels and no childproof safety caps. These key risk factors should be taken care by worldwide governments by means of health education and implementation of legislative and preventive strategies on labeling, formulation, and packaging of corrosive substances [1,21].…”