Table 2.
Clinical and laboratory characteristics of hospital-admitted patients, stratified by sickle cell disease status
| Non-sickle cell disease (n=15 574) | Sickle cell disease (n=128) | p value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| All admissions* | 3037 (96·5%) | 109 (3·5%) | .. |
| Age (months) | 11·0 (3·2–22·6) | 21·1 (12·5–32·7) | 0·22 |
| Weight for age Z score | −1·6 (1·5) | −1·8 (1·0) | 0·27 |
| Height for age Z score | −1·3 (1·5) | −1·1 (1·0) | 0·13 |
| Haemoglobin (g/L) | 10·3 (2·9) | 6·4 (2·2) | <0·0001 |
| Mean cell volume (fL) | 73·7 (14·9) | 78·0 (12·0) | 0·0036 |
| White blood cells (× 109 per μL) | 12·9 (9·5–17·5) | 26·5 (19·4–32·6) | <0·0001 |
| Platelets (× 106 per L) | 423 (221) | 356 (189) | 0·0021 |
| Plasmodium falciparum parasites (per μL whole blood)† | 60 293 (45 908–79 185) | 26 196‡ | <0·0001 |
Data are n (%), median (IQR), or mean (SD). p values were estimated using Student's t-test or Mann-Whitney test as appropriate.
*
3146 total admissions.
†
Data denote values for the subset of children with positive malaria blood films.
‡
Only one participant with sickle cell disease was admitted to hospital with a positive slide during the period of observation.