Damage from hyperpyrexia and the pituitary gland...(see details)?

Question

A very intelligent MD friend of mine tells me that pt's who have had a high fever and resulting damage often, later along, start unexpectedly going into system failure one system at a time...due to a common mistake most MD's make.

The mistake is forgetting the pituitary gland's involvement. They see low TSH levels, thinking thus that all is going along well...but missing the pituitary gland, ultimately to the patient's demise.

Is this true? Can you describe more fully what he meant? Or direct me towards any articles on the subject? Any insight would be valued, even contradiction.

I have a friend who suffered a fever of 107F due to meningitis and septic shock. He made an amazing recovery (as the MD documented a 9% chance of survival and told the parents their son would die) and is getting better in rehab. I am his RN. I can slip an article in the chart with a note and let his MD's peruse. My friend is doing so well, I'd hate to see things turn around...

Thanks!

Answer 1

Here are some sites to go see, I hope they help you.

Answer 2

Hyperpyrexia as u already know creates damage to the brain thats why we use hypothermia blankets and do not let body temperature go up that much. Aside from pituitary gland damage, be concerned of grand mal seizures as well which if uncontrolled can cause hypoxia and eventually result to death in brain cells creating more problem.