Clinical Profile of Dengue and Predictors of Its Severity Among Children

Dengue fever is a self-limiting, systemic viral illness that has a wide range of clinical manifestations. Last year dengue was severe in children with much mortality. This study was aimed to see the clinical profile of dengue and to find out the risk factors for developing severity. This cross sectional study was conducted over four months (June-September, 2018) in Department of Pediatrics of United Hospital Limited. All admitted dengue cases were analyzed. The predictors of developing severity were assessed by comparing variables between classical and severe dengue fever groups. A total of 106 children with Dengue fever were admitted. Mean age was 5.8±3 years with male predominance (60%). Common presentations include fever (100%), flushed appearance (72%), rash (43%), vomiting (39%), abdominal pain (36%), shock (28%) and respiratory distress (23%). In risk factor analysis, overweight (OR: 8.275, CI: 1.378-49.706) and massive serositis (OR: 17.86, CI: 4.733-67.399) were found statistically significant predictors of severe dengue. The overall mortality was 3%. So, overweight children and those patients who develop massive serositis are at increased risk of having severe dengue. Early identification of these features can help physicians to manage these cases judiciously.