Document Type

Article

Original Publication Date

2016

Journal/Book/Conference Title

Case Reports in Critical Care

Volume

2016

First Page

1

Last Page

4

DOI of Original Publication

10.1155/2016/8560871

Comments

Originally published at http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2016/8560871

Date of Submission

June 2017

Abstract

This case report summarizes the first use of intravenous vitamin C employed as an adjunctive interventional agent in the therapy of recurrent acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). The two episodes of ARDS occurred in a young female patient with Cronkhite-Canada syndrome, a rare, sporadically occurring, noninherited disorder that is characterized by extensive gastrointestinal polyposis and malabsorption. Prior to the episodes of sepsis, the patient was receiving nutrition via chronic hyperalimentation administered through a long-standing central venous catheter. The patient became recurrently septic with Gram positive cocci which led to two instances of ARDS. This report describes the broad-based general critical care of a septic patient with acute respiratory failure that includes fluid resuscitation, broad-spectrum antibiotics, and vasopressor support. Intravenous vitamin C infused at 50 mg per kilogram body weight every 6 hours for 96 hours was incorporated as an adjunctive agent in the care of this patient. Vitamin C when used as a parenteral agent in high doses acts “pleiotropically” to attenuate proinflammatory mediator expression, to improve alveolar fluid clearance, and to act as an antioxidant.

Rights

Copyright © 2016 Amit Bharara et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Is Part Of

VCU Internal Medicine Publications

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