title: Heat stroke leading to acute liver injury & failure: A case series from the Acute Liver Failure Study Group.
abstract: In the United States, nearly 1000 annual cases of heat stroke are reported but the frequency and outcome of severe liver injury in such patients is not well described. The aim of this study was to describe cases of acute liver injury (ALI) or failure (ALF) caused by heat stroke in a large ALF registry.
  
  
  
  Amongst 2675 consecutive subjects enrolled in a prospective observational cohort of patients with ALI or ALF between January 1998 and April 2015, there were eight subjects with heat stroke.
  
  
  
  Five patients had ALF and three had ALI. Seven patients developed acute kidney injury, all eight had lactic acidosis and rhabdomyolysis. Six patients underwent cooling treatments, three received N-acetyl cysteine (NAC), three required mechanical ventilation, three required renal replacement therapy, two received vasopressors, one underwent liver transplantation, and two patients died-both within 48 hours of presentation. All cases occurred between May and August, mainly in healthy young men because of excessive exertion.
  
  
  
  Management of ALI and ALF secondary to heat stroke should focus on cooling protocols and supportive care, with consideration of liver transplantation in refractory patients.
authors.affiliation: Division of Digestive and Liver Diseases, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Brian C
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-7567-6748
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: Davis
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA.
authors.forename: Holly
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tillman
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Raymond T
authors.initials: RT
authors.lastname: Chung
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology, VCU Medical Center, Richmond, VA, USA.
authors.forename: Richard T
authors.initials: RT
authors.lastname: Stravitz
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Rajender
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Reddy
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology, University of Michigan Health System, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
authors.forename: Robert J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Fontana
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, UAB School of Medicine, Birmingham, AL, USA.
authors.forename: Brendan
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: McGuire
authors.affiliation: California Pacific Medical Center, San Francisco, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Timothy
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Davern
authors.affiliation: Division of Digestive and Liver Diseases, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA.
authors.forename: William M
authors.initials: WM
authors.lastname: Lee
mesh_terms: D000111:Acetylcysteine / Q000627:therapeutic use; D058186:Acute Kidney Injury / Q000209:etiology; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D018883:Heat Stroke / Q000150:complications* / Q000401:mortality*; D006801:Humans; D008099:Liver / Q000503:physiopathology*; D017114:Liver Failure, Acute / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy*; D016031:Liver Transplantation; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012042:Registries; D017582:Renal Replacement Therapy; D012206:Rhabdomyolysis / Q000209:etiology; D014481:United States
chemical_list: D000111:Acetylcysteine
keywords: acute liver failure; heat stroke; liver transplantation; multi-organ system failure; rhabdomyolysis