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Neuroleptics may cause side effects, some of which are little known. We describe here a case of gastric dilation related to treatment with a neuroleptic in an elderly man. To our knowledge, such a case has never been reported in the literature. A 76-year-old man, living in a nursing home, was hospitalized for general weakness and abdominal pain. He had dementia with behavioral disorders treated with cyamemazine, a sedative and anxiolytic neuroleptic. Given a clinical suspicion of intestinal occlusion, an abdominopelvic computerized tomography scan was performed before the patient was admitted to our hospital. This computerized tomography scan did not show intestinal occlusion and there was no mention of gastric dilation in the computerized tomography scan report. Thus, acute gastroenteritis was suspected. The usual medications were stopped and symptomatic treatment for gastroenteritis was started. Quickly, his clinical state and biological parameters returned to normal and his usual treatment, including cyamemazine, was started again. The next day, the digestive symptoms, except for obstipation, reappeared. The abdominal X-ray showed gastric dilation without intestinal occlusion. The neuroleptic was stopped again and symptoms vanished the next day. This report underlines all of the necessary precautions and surveillance around drug prescription, especially in elderly persons.

Thrombosis due to heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) is rare but has a severe prognosis. Its management is not always easy, particularly in old patients with renal insufficiency. A 95-year-old woman was hospitalized for dyspnea. Curative treatment with unfractionated heparin was started because pulmonary embolism was suspected. Disseminated intravascular coagulation was then suspected because of thrombocytopenia, hypoprothrombinemia, hypofibrinogenemia, and a positive ethanol gelation test. The first immunoassay for HIT was negative. On the 12th day of hospitalization, bilateral cyanosis of the toes occurred associated with recent deep bilateral venous and arterial thrombosis at duplex ultrasound. New biological tests confirmed HIT and led us to stop heparin and to start argatroban with a positive clinical and biological evolution. Venous and arterial thrombosis associated with thrombocytopenia during heparin treatment must be considered HIT whatever the biological test results are. Argatroban is a good alternative treatment in the elderly.

Randall disease is an unusual cause of extraocular motor nerve (VI) palsy. A 35-year-old woman was hospitalized for sicca syndrome. The physical examination showed general weakness, weight loss, diplopia related to a left VIth nerve palsy, hypertrophy of the submandibular salivary glands, and peripheral neuropathy. The biological screening revealed renal insufficiency, serum monoclonal kappa light chain immunoglobulin, urinary monoclonal kappa light chain immunoglobulin, albuminuria, and Bence-Jones proteinuria. Bone marrow biopsy revealed medullar plasma cell infiltration. Immunofixation associated with electron microscopy analysis of the salivary glands showed deposits of kappa light chains. Randall disease was diagnosed. The patient received high-dose melphalan followed by autostem cell transplantation which led to rapid remission. Indeed, at the 2-month followup assessment, the submandibular salivary gland hypertrophy and renal insufficiency had disappeared, and the peripheral neuropathy, proteinuria, and serum monoclonal light chain had decreased significantly. The persistent diplopia was treated with nerve decompression surgery of the left extraocular motor nerve. Cranial nerve complications of Randall disease deserve to be recognized.