Bacterial sepsis in dengue fever - A paediatric perspective

Dengue fever is the most common arthropod borne infection worldwide. Bacterial sepsis in dengue fever is not widely recognised. This is a retrospective cohort study of children who had sepsis coexisting along with Dengue fever. One hundred and twenty-four patients aged between three months and eighteen years admitted in two private hospitals in North India were studied. Thirteen children had concurrent sepsis (13/124, 10.4%). Children between 0 and five years (7/13, 53.8%, p = 0.019), having longer hospital stay (7/13, 53.8%, p = 0.00029), shock (10/13, 76.9%, p = 0.00001), and increased PCT (13/13, 100%, p < 0.001) were some indicators of sepsis in these patients. Blood cultures were positive in five children. It is a matter of speculation as to why these patients of dengue are more susceptible to sepsis. Increased vascular permeability may increase the chances of bacterial contamination. Antibiotics should not be used routinely in dengue fever. However, young children presenting with severe symptoms especially shock should be screened for sepsis, and appropriate antibiotics should be started early.