children s health issues
Reye Syndrome
Prognosis for Reye Syndrome
The child’s prognosis depends on how long and how severely the brain was affected, whether the illness progressed to coma, the severity of increased pressure on the brain, and the level of ammonia in the blood. The overall chances that the child will die are about 21% but range from less than 2% among children with mild disease (stage I) to more than 80% among children in a deep coma (stage IV or V). Many children who survive the acute phase of the illness recover fully. However, children who had more severe symptoms may later have signs of brain damage, such as intellectual disability, a seizure disorder, or muscle weakness. Abnormal muscle movement or damage to specific nerves may also occur. Reye syndrome rarely affects a child twice. 