805 - Bromocriptine Use in Pediatric Disorders of Consciousness: A Retrospective Review

This retrospective observational study reviewed records of pediatric patients (≤18 years old) admitted from 2015–2024, including those with a completed coma recovery scale, an outcome measure for brain injury recovery, and documentation of bromocriptine use. Analyses were conducted in R version 4.5.0.

Results: 66 patients met inclusion criteria, of which 42 (63.64%) received bromocriptine. Patients who received bromocriptine were older (14.05 ± 4.24 vs. 13.11 ± 4.56 years, p=0.02), with similar sex (69.05% vs. 77.27% male, p=0.06) and injury etiology (73.81% vs. 74.24% traumatic, p=0.92). Bromocriptine was started before rehab in 45.24% and was discontinued before discharge in 59.52%. Mean duration of use during rehabilitation was 54.07 ± 38.41 days (range 1–154). Doses ranged 0.2 ± 0.16 to 0.3 ± 0.18 mg/kg/day, averaging 0.1 ± 0.17 at discharge. Adverse events occurred in 9 patients (21.43%).

Conclusions: Groups were largely similar, though bromocriptine patients were older, consistent with prior reports. Many began treatment before admission, although important to note physicians at our facility also cover consults at the largest referral source, and most discontinued before discharge, suggesting subacute use. Dosing varied widely across patients and providers (e.g., 1.8–16.2 mg/day to 5.4–21.6 mg/day in a 45-kg child). While generally well tolerated, adverse events warrant monitoring. Prospective studies are needed to further characterize dosing safety and tolerability of bromocriptine in children after brain injury.