Clinical characterization of dengue in a children's hospital of Cartagena (Colombia)

Objective: To characterize the clinical manifestations of dengue in pediatric patients in a health institution tertiary Cartagena (Colombia). Materials and methods: Descriptive study by review of medical records of patients hospitalized for dengue at Children's Hospital Napoleon Franco Pareja of Cartagena. We evaluated 136 children with acute fever unapparent etiology. Serology to confirm infection by dengue virus tests was used. Results: 98 cases of children hospitalized with dengue diagnosis were analyzed. Age ranged from under 6 months to 16 years, with the age range with the highest frequency of the disease 10 to 16 years (33.7 %). The most common signs and symptoms were rash (49.0 %), myalgia (35.7 %), headache (33.7 %), arthralgia (33.7 %), anorexia (24.5 %), tourniquet (19.4 %), pruritus (11.2 %), chills (8.2 %), facial erythema (7.1 %) and ocular retro pain (6.1 %). Conclusions: Age remains the predominant factor in the severity of dengue. Therefore urgently needed preventive measures in the pediatric population.