Characteristics of Dengue Fever in children under 6 months, a retrospective study

Introduction: Dengue is a viral infection transmitted by a mosquito. It can present with mild or severe forms. Objective: To describe the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of patients younger than 6 months, diagnosed with dengue fever, who presented to the pediatric emergency department. Materials and Methods: This was an observational, descriptive and retrospective study. We included Infants under 6 months of age with a diagnosis of dengue, who presented to the emergency department from 2017 to 2021. Variables studied: age, sex, place of residence, signs and symptoms, alarm signs, type of alarm signs, leukocytes, hematocrit, platelets, underlying disease, complications, ancillary diagnostic methods used, admission to the PICU, discharge status. Data were analyzed in SPSS using descriptive statistics. The protocol was approved by the institutional ethics committee. Results: 172 patients were included, with a median age of 5 months, 51.7% were male, 98.2% presented with fever, of which 47.3% presented with fever as their only symptom. 47.1% presented with rashes. 8.1% presented alarm signs. The median leukocytes were 5,105, platelets 250,000, and hematocrit 29.9 per mm3. 4.8% had underlying disease. 1.7% presented complications and 0.6% were admitted to the intensive care unit. 73.2% were diagnosed by NS1 antigen test. None died. Conclusions: The mean age of the infants was 5 months, no marked leukopenia or thrombocytopenia was observed. Most had a mild course of the disease and only 1 patient required admission to the pediatric intensive care unit. No deaths were registered.