Critical care for dengue in adult patients: an overview of current knowledge and future challenges

Development and Utility of Practical Indicators of Critical Outcomes in Dengue Patients Presenting to Hospital: A Retrospective Cross-Sectional Study

Global travel and climate change have drastically increased the number of countries with endemic or epidemic dengue. The largest dengue outbreak in Taiwan, with 43,419 cases and 228 deaths, occurred in 2015. Practical and cost-effective tools for early prediction of clinical outcomes in dengue patients, especially the elderly, are limited. This study identified the clinical profile and prognostic indicators of critical outcomes in dengue patients on the basis of clinical parameters and comorbidities. A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted in a tertiary hospital from 1 July 2015 to 30 November 2015. Patients diagnosed with dengue were enrolled, and the initial clinical presentations, diagnostic laboratory data, details of the underlying comorbidities, and initial management recommendations based on 2009 World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines were used to evaluate prognostic indicators of critical outcomes in dengue patients. Dengue patients from another regional hospital were used to evaluate accuracy. A group B (4 points) classification, temperature < 38.5 °C (1 point), lower diastolic blood pressure (1 point), prolonged activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) (2 points), and elevated liver enzymes (1 point) were included in the scoring system. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of the clinical model was 0.933 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.905–0.960). The tool had good predictive value and clinical applicability for identifying patients with critical outcomes.

Dengue and Other Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers

How to cite this article: Shastri PS, Taneja S. Dengue and Other Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers. Indian J Crit Care Med 2021;25(Suppl 2):S130–S133.

Symptoms associated with adverse dengue fever prognoses at the time of reporting in the 2015 dengue outbreak in Taiwan

BACKGROUND

Tainan experienced the most severe dengue epidemic in Taiwan in 2015. This study investigates the association between the signs and symptoms at the time of reporting with the adverse dengue prognoses.

METHODS

A descriptive study was conducted using secondary data from the Dengue Disease Reporting System in Tainan, Taiwan, between January 1 and December 31, 2015. A multivariate stepwise logistic regression was used to identify the risk factors for the adverse prognoses: ICU admissions and mortality.

RESULTS

There were 22,777 laboratory-confirmed reported cases (mean age 45.6 ± 21.2 years), of which 3.7% were admitted to intensive care units (ICU), and 0.8% were fatal. The most common symptoms were fever (92.8%), myalgia (26.6%), and headache (22.4%). The prevalence of respiratory distress, altered consciousness, shock, bleeding, and thrombocytopenia increased with age. The multivariate analysis indicated that being in 65-89 years old age group [Adjusted Odds Ratio (aOR):4.95], or the 90 years old and above age group (aOR: 9.06), and presenting with shock (aOR: 8.90) and respiratory distress (aOR: 5.31) were significantly associated with the risk of ICU admission. While old age (aOR: 1.11), respiratory distress (aOR: 9.66), altered consciousness (aOR: 7.06), and thrombocytopenia (aOR: 2.55) were significantly associated with the risk of mortality.

CONCLUSIONS

Dengue patients older than 65 and those with severe and non-specific signs and symptoms at the time of reporting were at a higher risk of ICU admission and mortality. First-line healthcare providers need to be aware of the varied presentations between the different age groups to allow early diagnosis and in-time management, which would prevent ICU admissions and fatalities in dengue patients.

Differences in Mortality and Clinical Manifestations of Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever in Taiwan in Different Years: A Comparison for Cases in 2014 and 2015 Epidemics

People in southern Taiwan experienced two major dengue outbreaks in 2014 and 2015. The mortality and clinical features were very different between these 2 years. Dengue virus serotype 1 (DENV-1) caused epidemic outbreak in 2014 and DENV-2 was predominant in 2015. The characteristics of dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) cases in the 2 years was analyzed. We conducted a retrospective chart review to analyze the clinical and laboratory features of 206 adult patients with DHF in southern Taiwan in 2014 and 2015. The mortality rate of DHF cases in 2015 was higher than that of cases in 2014 (38.7% versus 12.4%, P < 0.0001). Compared with cases in 2014, DHF cases in 2015 had more complications, such as gastrointestinal bleeding (78.5% versus 61.9%, P = 0.01), severe hepatitis (30.1% versus 8%, P < 0.0001), and myocarditis (14% versus 0.9%, P < 0.0001). Among the mortality cases, diabetes, chronic renal failure, proton-pump inhibitors using, platelet transfusion, and Charlson comorbidity index score (Charlson score) were also higher in 2015. Multivariate analysis for the mortality cases revealed that the risk factors were Charlson score ≥ 5 (P = 0.02, odds ratio [OR] = 4.07, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.244-13.307), severe hepatitis (P < 0.0001, OR = 11.97, 95% CI = 3.831-37.396), and acute renal failure (P < 0.0001, OR = 98.76, 95% CI = 10.847-899.22). DHF cases in 2015 had higher mortality and more complications, such as gastrointestinal bleeding, severe hepatitis, and myocarditis, than in 2014 in southern Taiwan. In the 2-year DHF case series, Charlson score ≥ 5, severe hepatitis, and acute renal failure were independent significant variables for mortality.

Management and outcomes of severe dengue patients presenting with sepsis in a tropical country

BACKGROUND

Dengue is a common cause of infection in adults in tropical countries. Sepsis is a syndrome of systemic manifestations induced by infection of any organisms; including bacterial, fungal and viral agents. Here, we investigated the diagnosis, management and outcomes of dengue patients presenting with sepsis in a prospective study of community-acquired sepsis in Thailand.

METHODS

From June to December 2015, 874 adult patients (age≥18 years) with suspected or documented community-acquired infection, with ≥3 diagnostic criteria for sepsis according to the Surviving Sepsis Campaign 2012, and within 24 hours of admission were evaluated. Serum was stored and later tested for dengue PCR assays.

RESULTS

A total of 126 patients had dengue PCR assays positive (2 DENV-1, 12 DENV-2, 24 DENV-3 and 88 DENV-4), and 5 of them (4%) died. We found that attending physicians suspected dengue infection on admission in 84 patients (67%), and recorded dengue infection as the final diagnosis in 96 patients (76%). Four of five fatal cases were diagnosed and treated as septic shock not due to dengue. In multivariable analysis, there was a trend showing that age≥60 years, hypoxemia and misdiagnosis of dengue by attending physicians were associated with 28-day mortality.

CONCLUSIONS

A number of adult patients who died of dengue are misdiagnosed as severe sepsis and septic shock. Diagnosis of dengue based on clinical features alone is difficult. Rapid diagnostic tests for dengue may need to be routinely used in adult patients presenting with sepsis and septic shock in tropical countries. This approach could improve diagnosis and management of those patients.

A Cohort Study of Adult Patients with Severe Dengue in Taiwanese Intensive Care Units: The Elderly and APTT Prolongation Matter for Prognosis

Background

There was a large dengue outbreak in Taiwan in 2015, in which the ages of the affected individuals were higher than those in other countries. The aim of this study was to explore the characteristics and prognostic factors for adults with severe dengue in intensive care units (ICUs).

Methods

All adults admitted to ICUs with dengue virus infection (DENV) at a medical center from July 1, 2015 to December 31, 2015 were enrolled. DENV was diagnosed by the presence of serum NS1 antigen, IgM antibodies to dengue virus, or dengue virus RNA by real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. Demographic data, clinical features, and lab data were collected, and a multivariate Cox model was used to identify the predictive factors for in-hospital mortality.

Results

Seventy-five patients admitted to ICUs with laboratory-confirmed DENV were enrolled (mean age 72.3±9.3 years). The most common comorbidities included hypertension (72.0%), diabetes (43.7%), and chronic kidney disease (22.7%). The in-hospital case fatality rate (CFR) was 41.3%. The patients who died were predominantly female, had higher disease severity at ICU admission, shorter ICU/hospital stay, longer initial activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT), and higher initial serum aspartate transaminase levels. Cardiac arrest before ICU admission (hazard ratio [HR]: 6.26 [1.91–20.54]), prolonged APTT (>48 seconds; HR: 3.91 [1.69–9.07]), and the presence of acute kidney injury on admission (HR: 2.48 [1.07–5.74]), were independently associated with in-hospital fatality in the Cox multivariate analysis.

Conclusion

During the 2015 dengue outbreak in Taiwan, the patients with severe dengue in ICUs were characterized by old age, multiple comorbidities, and a high CFR. Organ failure (including cardiac failure, and renal failure) and coagulation disturbance (prolongation of initial APTT) were independent predictive factors for in-hospital fatality.

Severe forms of dengue fever (DF) are usually considered as a pediatric disease in southern Asia and are graded from dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) to dengue with shock syndrome (DSS). However, the age of affected individuals is increasing in Singapore, Thailand, Mainland China, Taiwan and many other countries. Limited data are available on the elderly with DF in intensive care units (ICUs). DF in the elderly is an emerging infectious disease and poses a new clinical challenge to physicians. We enrolled the patients with laboratory-confirmed dengue in our ICU during the 2015 dengue outbreak in Taiwan. These patients were characterized by old age, multiple comorbidities, and a high case fatality rate (CFR). All of the patients were classified as severe dengue, and the in-hospital CFR was 41.3%. Renal failure and cardiac arrest were associated with fatality. In addition to organ failure, initial prolonged activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) in our study was consistent with an independent predictive factor for in-hospital fatality. Previous studies have also reported that prolongation of APTT is a clinical predictor of dengue virus infection (DENV) or DHF. Our results highlight that APTT prolongation may be a prognostic factor in critically ill adults with severe dengue.