Table 6.
Values for clinical variables that differed significantly in retinopathy positive and retinopathy negative children with cerebral malaria, according severity of retinal hemorrhage
| No. of retinal hemorrhages | 0 (N = 115) | 1–5 (N = 74) | 6–20 (N = 39) | 21–50 (N = 16) | > 50 (N = 10) | rs, Spearman P value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| History | ||||||
| Mean duration of coma before presentation (hours) (SD) | 14.2 (11.5) | 18.4 (14.9) | 19.4 (16.3) | 13.3 (7.9) | 22.8 (15.0) | 0.125, 0.046* |
| Mean duration of difficulty breathing before presentation (days) (SD) | 0.22 (0.60) | 0.45 (0.71) | 0.38 (0.67) | 0.38 (0.62) | 1.00 (1.63) | 0.191, 0.002* |
| Mean time since last ate (hours) (SD) | 28.6 (15.9) | 37.4 (22.0) | 36.1 (17.4) | 39.5 (19.9) | 40.9 (19.0) | 0.232, < 0.001* |
| Examination | ||||||
| Mean heart rate (beats per minute) (SD) | 144 (28) | 155 (28) | 150 (23) | 153 (29) | 143 (25) | 0.118, 0.061 |
| Mean respiratory rate (breaths per minute) (SD) | 43.1 (14.9) | 46.5 (14.3) | 46.9 (13.4) | 53.1 (12.7) | 47.3 (8.6) | 0.199, 0.002* |
| Mean O2 saturation (%) (SD) | 96.2 (4.9) | 95.3 (5.4) | 95.0 (5.0) | 93.6 (7.0) | 92.9 (7.6) | −0.147, 0.019* |
| Laboratory findings | ||||||
| Mean hemoglobin (g/dL) (SD) | 7.68 (2.27) | 6.56 (2.14) | 6.29 (2.40) | 5.86 (1.81) | 5.4 (1.55) | −0.323, < 0.001* |
| Median LDH (U/L) (IQR) | 704 (498–967) | 914 (705–1,150) | 846 (616–1,111) | 849 (753–1,172) | 1,306 (1,131–1,593) | 0.274, < 0.001* |
| Median haptoglobin (mg/dL) (IQR) | 0 (0–2) | 0 (0–0) | 0 (0–0) | 0 (0–0) | 0 (0–0) | −0.202, 0.001* |
| Median BUN (mg/dL) (IQR) | 14 (10–21) N = 114 | 19 (13–29) N = 72 | 19 (13–31) | 17 (15–25) | 20 (17–28) | 0.238, < 0.001* |
| Median creatinine (mg/dL) (IQR) | 0.37 (0.29–0.52) N = 114 | 0.45 (0.32–0.59) N = 72 | 0.45 (0.33–0.55) | 0.36 (0.31–0.47) | 0.47 (0.35–0.71) | 0.102, 0.106 |
| Median BUN/Cr ratio (IQR) | 36.4 (29.1–48.0) N = 110 | 44.7 (30.2–53.6) N = 69 | 45.5 (35.7–52.0) N = 38 | 45.9 (38.8–58.6) N = 15 | 40.2 (32.8–56.0) | 0.210, 0.001* |
| Median Plasmodium falciparum HRP-2 (ng/mL) (IQR) | 2,308 (516–5,148) | 3,347 (1,536–5,376) | 2,917 (1,538–5,659) | 2,409 (1,727–5,252) | 6,263 (3,350–15,314) | 0.202, 0.001* |
| Clinical outcomes | ||||||
| Median length of admission [if survived] (days) (IQR) | 6 (5–7) N = 106 | 7 (5–8) N = 67 | 7 (6–8) N = 31 | 7 (6–9) N = 11 | 7 (6–9) N = 8 | 0.199, 0.003* |
| Median coma duration (hours) (IQR) | 40 (21–64) | 52 (32–82) | 62 (37–90) | 62 (0–90) | 90 (46–129) | 0.204, 0.001* |
| Median no. of transfusions (IQR) | 0 (0–1) | 1 (0–1) | 1 (0–1) | 1 (1–2) | 1 (1–2) | 0.324, < 0.001* |
BUN = blood urea nitrogen; CI = confidence interval; HRP-2 = histidine-rich protein-2; IQR = interquartile range; LDH = lactate dehydrogenase; SD = standard deviation. For tests that did not include all participants, the n is listed below the result.
*
P < 0.05.