Reye's syndrome. Salicylate metabolism, viral antibody levels, and other factors in surviving patients and unaffected family members.

To investigate possible etiologic factors for Reye's syndrome (RS), five survivors and their unaffected family members were studied. This study showed low salicylate levels among the patients with RS compared with siblings and parents when challenged with three doses of aspirin. Thus, the patients with RS, three to ten years after having had RS, exhibited normal or increased ability to metabolize aspirin. We found significantly higher antibody levels to influenza A and varicella among the patients with RS, further supporting the importance of these viral infections in the etiology of the syndrome.