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Published on: June 5, 2019
Platelet distribution width as an useful indicator of influenza severity in children
Seyin Zou1,2, Siti Hasmah Mohtar3, Roshani Othman4
1Department of Laboratory Medicine, Guangdong Second Provincial General Hospital, Guangzhou, 510317, China. zouseyin@126.com.
Insights
Platelet distribution width is a useful indicator for assessing influenza severity in children. Lower levels of platelet distribution width were observed in children with severe influenza A and B infections.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Infectious Diseases
- Hematology
Background:
- Influenza is a significant respiratory illness in children.
- Accurate assessment of influenza severity is crucial for timely and effective management.
- Current diagnostic and severity assessment tools may have limitations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the utility of platelet distribution width (PDW) as a biomarker for assessing influenza severity in pediatric patients.
- To compare PDW levels between severe and non-severe influenza cases in children.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of baseline characteristics and laboratory results from children with influenza.
- Utilized Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve analysis for combined detection of inflammatory markers.
- Employed scatter-dot plots to compare PDW differences between severe and non-severe influenza groups.
Main Results:
- Children with influenza B showed higher rates of bronchitis and pneumonia; influenza A was associated with other serious symptoms.
- Platelet parameters, including PDW, differed between age groups (<4 years vs. ≥4 years) with influenza.
- Significantly lower PDW levels were found in children with severe influenza (A and B) compared to the non-severe group (P < 0.05).
Conclusions:
- Platelet distribution width is a potentially valuable and cost-effective indicator for differentiating influenza and assessing its severity in children.
- Combined detection of platelet parameters with other indicators may improve the distinction between healthy and influenza-infected children.
Purpose:
The present study aims to investigate the potential of platelet distribution width as an useful parameter to assess the severity of influenza in children.
Methods:
Baseline characteristics and laboratory results were collected and analyzed. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to joint detection of inflammatory markers for influenza positive children, and the scatter-dot plots were used to compare the differences between severe and non-severe group.
Results:
Influenza B positive children had more bronchitis and pneumonia (P < 0.05), influenza A infected children had more other serious symptoms (P = 0.007). Neutrophil count, lymphocyte count, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and platelet parameters performed differently among < 4 years and ≥ 4 years children with influenza. Combined detection of platelet parameters and other indicators could better separate healthy children from influenza infected children than single indicator detection. The levels of platelet distribution width of children with severe influenza (A and B) infection was significantly dropped, compared with non-severe group (P < 0.05).
Conclusions:
Platelet distribution width could be a very useful and economic indicator in distinction and severity assessment for children with influenza.
