Abstract / Summary
Aim: Alkaline toxicity is a rare emergency condition that may result in substantial health issues in children with long-term morbidities. Our study aims to describe the clinical and endoscopic features of alkaline ingestion in children and to review the management. Materials and Methods: A retrospective cohort analysis was conducted on 33 pediatric patients, who ingested weak or strong alkaline substance and presented to the emergency department in a single tertiary center. Results: The mean patients’ age was 24±18.03 months with 17 (51.5%) boys and 16 (48.5%) girls. Twenty cases (60.6%) ingested strongly alkaline substances, and 13 cases (39.4%) ingested weakly alkaline substances. The common presenting symptoms were vomiting (63.6%), drooling (39.4%), hematemesis (12.1%), and stridor and chest wall burns (6.1%). Shortness of breath and oral stenosis were rare (3%). Esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) was performed within 48 hours on children who had ingested a strong alkali. The endoscopic findings followed Zargar’s classification. Suicide attempts or deaths were not reported in any cases. Clinical manifestations did not differ significantly between the exposure groups; however, endoscopic findings were not compared because EGD was performed only in children who had ingested strong alkali. Among the 20 children who underwent EGD, esophageal burns were identified in 8 (40%). Conclusion: Our findings highlight the role of early endoscopic evaluation in identifying gastrointestinal injury after alkaline ingestion and guiding subsequent clinical management in affected children.