MATERIAL AND METHODS

A 15-year-old girl developed rhabdomyolysis with myoglobinuria after anaesthesia dur-ing which suxamethonium 250 mg was injected in divided doses. The laboratory methods used for demonstration of myoglobinuria are described. The study was extended to 63 patients submitted to minor surgery. Myoglobinuria could not be demonstrated in any of these cases whether or not anaesthesia included suxamethonium as a single dose of 1 mg/kg. Creatine kinase activity measurement in 25 of these patients disclosed no significant difference between pre- and postoperative values. It is con-cluded that myoglobinuria in the patient presented was due to an excessive dose of suxamethonium. Myoglobinuria is most often caused by trauma, ischaemia, inflammation or intracellular enzyme defects (Editorial, Lancet, 1964). In recent years myoglobinuria has been detected after operations under anaesthesia including relaxation with suxa-methonium (Bennike and Jarnum, 1964; Airak-sinen and Tammisto, 1966). In one case (Bennike and Jarnum, 1964) rhabdomyolysis was so exten-sive that renal function was severely impaired because of myoglobinuria. The present report describes another case of suxamethonium-induced myoglobinuria. Special interest has been given to methods used for the demonstration of myoglobin. The study was extended to include examination for myoglobin of the urine from 63 patients undergoing minor surgery