Acute renal failure due to atraumatic rhabdomyolysis in coma diabeticum.

A case report of a twelve year old boy with coma diabeticum and atraumatic rhabdomyolysis is presented. At admission the patient was comatose. Hyperglycemia and hyperosmolarity were the main metabolic disorders. 32 hours after admission marked myoglobinuria due to atraumatic rhabdomyolysis led to acute renal failure. At first uremia was compensated by arteriovenous hemofiltration and later by conventional hemodialysis. During the sixth week after admission urinary output started and serum creatinine and urea levels gradually declined to normal. Special attention should be paid to atraumatic rhabdomyolysis in patients with coma diabeticum. Continuous arteriovenous hemofiltration is an effective extracorporal therapeutic technique to compensate uremia in critically ill patients.