Case Reports in Medicine
Volume 2011, Article ID 194296, 3 pages
http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2011/194296
Malignant Hyperthermia and Idiopathic HyperCKemia
International Scholars Program, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
Received 19 September 2011; Accepted 12 October 2011
Academic Editor: Piotr K. Janicki
Copyright © 2011 Pashtoon Murtaza Kasi. 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.
Abstract
Malignant hyperthermia (MH) is a rare but life-threatening condition that is more frequently encountered and discussed within the anesthesia literature. Here we through a case specifically discuss the susceptibility of individuals and/or families with asymptomatic unexplained elevations of creatine kinase (CK), also frequently referred to as hyperCKemia or idiopathic hyperCKemia (IHCK) in recent reports. The clinical implications would be to underscore the importance of this as a susceptibility to developing MH and highlight the importance of genetic susceptibility testing in such cases. Anesthesiologists and critical care intensivists as well as primary care physicians should keep this in mind when seeing patients with asymptomatic hyperCKemia and potentially inform them about the possibility of developing MH if exposed to triggering agents. Genetic susceptibility testing should be considered if available and family members should also receive nontriggering agents when undergoing anesthesia and wear Medic Alert tags.