caa a22 4500 475784448 CHVBK 20180406123654.0 cr unu---uuuuu 170329e20000801xx s 000 0 eng 10.1007/PL00008399 doi (NATIONALLICENCE)springer-10.1007/PL00008399 Reye syndrome revisited: a descriptive term covering a group of heterogeneous disorders [Elektronische Daten] [Maria Casteels-Van Daele, Christel Van Geet, Carine Wouters, Ephrem Eggermont] Reye syndrome, characterised by the combination of liver disease and non-inflammatory encephalopathy, is a non-specific clinicopathological entity and a descriptive term covering a group of heterogeneous disorders. Nowadays, some of these patients are diagnosed more correctly as having infectious, metabolic, toxic or other disease. The non-specific case definition implies that the epidemiological studies suggesting a link with acetylsalicylic acid have been performed on a heterogeneous group of children, whereby the value of these studies and their ensuing hypothesis is weakened. Moreover, a detailed analysis of the epidemiological surveys of the Centers for Disease Control, the Yale study and of the British risk factor study provides evidence that not only the use of acetylsalicylic acid but also that of phenothiazines and other anti-emetics is significantly greater in Reye syndrome cases than in controls. As to the decline of Reye syndrome, recent literature data reveal that this is related to more accurate modern diagnosis of infectious, metabolic or toxic disease, reducing the percentage of idiopathic or true cases of Reye syndrome. Conclusion Reye syndrome is a non-specific descriptive term covering a group of heterogeneous disorders. Moreover, not only the use of acetylsalicylic acid but also of antiemetics is statistically significant in Reye syndrome cases. Both facts weaken the validity of the epidemiological surveys suggesting a link with acetylsalicylic acid. Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg, 2000 Key words Reye syndrome nationallicence Epidemiological surveys nationallicence Anti-emetics nationallicence Acetylsalicylic acid nationallicence Casteels-Van Daele Maria Department of Paediatrics, University Hospital Gasthuisberg, Herestraat 49, 3000 Leuven, Belgium Tel.: +32-16-343972; Fax: +32-16-343971, BE aut Van Geet Christel Department of Paediatrics, University Hospital Gasthuisberg, Herestraat 49, 3000 Leuven, Belgium Tel.: +32-16-343972; Fax: +32-16-343971, BE aut Wouters Carine Department of Paediatrics, University Hospital Gasthuisberg, Herestraat 49, 3000 Leuven, Belgium Tel.: +32-16-343972; Fax: +32-16-343971, BE aut Eggermont Ephrem Department of Paediatrics, University Hospital Gasthuisberg, Herestraat 49, 3000 Leuven, Belgium Tel.: +32-16-343972; Fax: +32-16-343971, BE aut https://doi.org/10.1007/PL00008399 text/html Onlinezugriff via DOI 1 research-article jats NATIONALLICENCE 856 40 https://doi.org/10.1007/PL00008399 text/html Onlinezugriff via DOI NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Casteels-Van Daele Maria Department of Paediatrics, University Hospital Gasthuisberg, Herestraat 49, 3000 Leuven, Belgium Tel.: +32-16-343972; Fax: +32-16-343971, BE aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Van Geet Christel Department of Paediatrics, University Hospital Gasthuisberg, Herestraat 49, 3000 Leuven, Belgium Tel.: +32-16-343972; Fax: +32-16-343971, BE aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Wouters Carine Department of Paediatrics, University Hospital Gasthuisberg, Herestraat 49, 3000 Leuven, Belgium Tel.: +32-16-343972; Fax: +32-16-343971, BE aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Eggermont Ephrem Department of Paediatrics, University Hospital Gasthuisberg, Herestraat 49, 3000 Leuven, Belgium Tel.: +32-16-343972; Fax: +32-16-343971, BE aut Metadata rights reserved Springer special CC-BY-NC licence nationallicence BK010053 XK010053 XK010000 NATIONALLICENCE NATIONALLICENCE NL-springer