For a study, it was determined that oral rehydration therapy (ORT) was the treatment of choice for mildly to moderately dehydrated patients with acute gastroenteritis (AGE). Even though ondansetron was an excellent antiemetic and led to successful ORT, there was QT prolongation in people who took it. Researchers examined the effect of oral ondansetron on the QT interval in mildly to moderately dehydrated children with AGE. This retrospective observational investigation used a single pediatric emergency department (ED) at a tertiary university hospital. Between January 2017 and June 2018, Researchers collected medical records of patients with a primary diagnosis of AGE who received oral ondansetron and conducted an electrocardiogram. A pediatric emergency physician used Bazett’s approach to compute the corrected QT interval (QTc), and a pediatric cardiologist verified the results. The QTc levels were compared before (preQTc) and after (postQTc) ondansetron dosing. They used the difference between preQTc and postQTc to determine QTc. They also looked into any possible cardiac side effects from taking oral ondansetron.
There were a total of 80 patients in a study. The patients’ average age was (53.31±32.42) months, and 45% were male. On average, they gave oral ondansetron at a dose of (0.18±0.04) mg/kg. They performed average time from when ondansetron was given to when the ECG was 65 minutes and 26 minutes. The average preQTc time was (403.3±24.0) ms, and the average postQTc time was (407.2±26.7) ms. Two patients had a preQTc of greater than or equal to 460 ms, and one had a postQTc of greater than or equal to 460 ms. In seven patients, the ΔQTc was less than 30 ms (8.8%). The ΔQTc was greater than or equal to 60 ms. There were no pre-or postQTc intervals of less than greater than or equal to 500 ms. After taking ondansetron, no patient developed a fatal cardiac arrhythmia. A single dosage of ondansetron given orally to children with AGE did not result in high-risk QTc prolongation or lethal arrhythmia.
Reference:bmcpediatr.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12887-021-02937-0
