Serum cortisol levels in children with dengue haemorrhagic fever.
Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever (DHF) is a serious and often fatal paediatric problem in Myanmar. Acute and convalescent serum cortisol levels were measured in 62 children with dengue infection to study cortisol sufficiency in this disease. Twenty-six children with non-dengue acute viral infection were also included as controls. In acute stage, highest mean serum cortisol level (655.4 +/- 72.18 nmol/l) was observed in DHF cases presenting with shock, followed by DHF non-shock cases (640.56 +/- 74.58 nmol/l) and dengue fever cases (617.2 +/- 75.38 nmol/l). Cases with DHF had significantly higher serum cortisol level (P < 0.05) than in controls (444.41 +/- 59.71 nmol/l). In cases of DHF, mean serum cortisol level during the acute stage was found to be significantly two-fold higher than the convalescent stage. We found no cortisol insufficiency in cases of dengue haemorrhagic fever during acute and convalescent stages of illness.
Myo-Khin
Department of Medical Research, Yangon, Union of Myanmar.
Soe-Thein
Thein-Thein-Myint
Than-Nu-Swe
Tin-Tin-Saw
Muya-Than
D000208:Acute Disease; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003715:Dengue / Q000097:blood* / Q000150:complications; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D002052:Myanmar; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012769:Shock / Q000097:blood / Q000209:etiology; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric
D006854:Hydrocortisone