severe bradycardia caused by octreotide in an adolescent: a case report

Background and objective: octreotide is a somatostatin analogue used to control upper gastrointestinal (gi) bleeding. adverse effects observed include hyperglycemia, growth hormone deficiency, hypertension, q-t interval prolongation, and ventricular fibrillation. in rare cases, mild bradycardia has been reported.case report: a 16-year-old boy was admitted with shock due to hematemesis and melena a bleeding duodenal ulcer. he was treated with an intravenous venous octreotide infusion at a dose of 1 microgram/kg/hour, and bleeding was controlled with coagulation forceps and adrenaline injection. because of rebleeding, octreotide was increased to 2 micrograms/kg/hour because of bleeding again. after 24 hours, he developed severe bradycardia (pulse rate (pr) 45/minute). his pr increased to 66/minute by 12 hours after octreotide was discontinued.conclusion: octreotide can cause significant cardiovascular side effects. bradycardia and cardiac conduction blocks may affect the hemodynamics of a child with acute gi bleeding.