ACUTE-RENAL-FAILURE, COMPARTMENT SYNDROME, AND SYSTEMIC CAPILLARY LEAK SYNDROME COMPLICATING CARBON-MONOXIDE POISONING

Case Report: Five Indian labourers sharing one room were found lying o n the floor unconscious. A coal fire had been lit to provide heat duri ng the cold night and was still burning inside the room. Two of the me n were pronounced dead at the scene. The other three were transferred to the hospital in critical condition. This paper contains the case re ports of the three patients who were transferred to the hospital. One of the patients died 60 h after admission. The other two patients were successfully treated and released. The three patients developed sever e rhabdomyolysis complicated by compartment syndrome. The patient who died developed compartment syndrome in three extremities. Two patients required blood transfusion due to very severe hemolysis. The hemolysi s in the third patient was less severe and did not require blood trans fusion. Two patients developed anuric acute renal failure due to acute tubular necrosis as shown by renal biopsy. Two patients developed the full blown picture of systemic capillary leak syndrome. Gross and mic roscopic examination of specimens taken at autopsy showed extensive ne crosis of all skeletal muscles, myocardial necrosis and acute tubular necrosis affecting both kidneys.