Propofol infusion syndrome: an unusual cause of renal failure

Propofol infusion syndrome has been increasingly recognized as a syndrome of unexplained myocardial failure, metabolic acidosis, and rhabdomyolysis with renal failure. It has been described only with acute neurologic injury or acute inflammatory diseases complicated by severe infections or sepsis. It appears to develop in the context of high-dose, prolonged propofol (100 microg/kg/min) treatment in combination with catecholamines and/or steroids. This was first noted in children but is increasingly recognized in adults. This is a case report of 2 patients (a 42-year-old man and a 17-year-old girl) who had acute renal failure associated with use of propofol in the appropriate clinical setting. It examines the pathophysiology and the possible mechanisms of this condition and illustrates the need to consider it as the cause of rhabdomyolysis and acute renal failure in critically ill patients.