Reye's Syndrome

Reye's Syndrome

Background Information:

• Was first categorized as a disease by, Australian pathologist, Ralph Douglass Reye in 1963

Reye's Syndrome | Doctor | Patient.co.uk. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.patient.co.uk/doctor/reyes-syndrome

• Requires the presence of an underlying viral infection such as influenza and chicken pox
• Cases of the disease occur in children from ages 4-15
• In the 1980's it claimed the lives of 500 children every year

There are 5 stage of the disease:

Reye's Syndrome | Doctor | Patient.co.uk. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.patient.co.uk/doctor/reyes-syndrome

Riegelman, R. K. (2010). Public health 101: Healthy people--healthy populations. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett.

• Stage 1- the child is lethargic and begins having diarrhea or vomiting
• Stage 2- the child may experience delirium and become aggressive
• Stage 3- the child becomes unarousable
• Stage 4- the child remains unarousable and their pupils become dilated
• Stage 5- the child is unarousable, experiences seizures, flaccid paralysis, their pupils become unresponsive and respiratory arrest will occur which eventually results in death

Effect on the brain:

• Alters the patient's emotions, can cause them to become irritable and aggressive
• Many survivors suffer from neurological damage
• Example- Cerebral edema
• Mental status can improve over time either spontaneously or through therapy

Reye's Syndrome | Doctor | Patient.co.uk. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.patient.co.uk/doctor/reyes-syndrome

Success!

The P.E.R.I.E Approach Continued

• Through the evaluations we are able to conclude that the implementations were effective
• Epidemiological studies and public health efforts successfully reduced the outbreak of Reye's Syndrome

Implementations:

• Occur through primary interventions
• Starting in 1980 the CDC (The Center for Disease Control) cautioned physicians and parents about the dangers of giving aspirin to their children
• In 1982 the U.S. surgeon general, the nation’s leading spokesman on matters of public health, issued an advisory on the dangers of aspirin use for children
• In 1986 a Reye’s Syndrome warning was required by the U.S. Drug and Food Administration to be placed on all aspirin containing medications

Evaluation:

Riegelman, R. K. (2010). Public health 101: Healthy people--healthy populations. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett.

• The amount of cases of Reye’s Syndrome dropped significantly from 500, in the early 1980’s, to less than 5 per year in recent years because of the efforts to educate the public about the disease
• The survival rate has risen from 30 to 80%

Riegelman, R. K. (2010). Public health 101: Healthy people--healthy populations. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett.

Clute, J. L. (2014, September 01). Reye Syndrome. Retrieved from http://kidshealth.org/parent/infections/bacterial_viral/reye.html#

The P.E.R.I.E Approach

Problem:

Recommendations:

• Children are suffering from Reye's Syndrome, an incurable and fatal disease

• The entire population must be informed about the dangers of giving children aspirin
• This can be done through informational brochures and the placement of warning labels on aspirin-containing medications

Etiology:

• Epidemiologists examined case-control studies to determine the cause of the disease
• Aspirin= the contributory cause
• Aspirin follows all three requirements of contributory cause:

The three requirements

• 1.) The “cause” is associated with the “effect”:

- Children who have acute viral infections and take aspirin more frequently develop Reye’s Syndrome than children who have acute viral infections and do not take aspirin

• 2.)The “cause” must precede the “effect” in time:

- The development of an acute viral infection and the treatment thereof with aspirin comes before the development of Reye’s Syndrome

• 3.) Altering the “cause” alters the “effect” :

- If children stop taking aspirin when suffering from an acute viral infection, there will be a reduction in the frequency of Reye’s Syndrome cases

Riegelman, R. K. (2010). Public health 101: Healthy people--healthy populations. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett.