title: [Clinical analysis of childhood Henoch-Schonlein purpura on the Tibetan Plateau, China].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To study the clinical characteristics of childhood Henoch-Schonlein purpura (HSP) on the Tibetan Plateau, China.
  
  
  METHODS
  One hundred and twenty-five HSP children admitted to Shannan People's Hospital, Tibet, were assigned to the observation group, and 96 HSP children admitted to Wuhan Children's Hospital were assigned to the control group. The disease characteristics, clinical manifestations, treatment, and prognosis in both groups were retrospectively analyzed and compared.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean age of HSP onset and the female-to-male ratio in the observation group were both significantly higher than in the control group (P<0.05). There was a significant difference in seasonal onset between two groups. Significant differences in the etiological factors were observed between the two groups (P<0.05). The gastrointestinal manifestation was more prominent in the observation group compared with that in the control group (P<0.05). Laboratory findings showed that the mean erythrocyte sedimentation rate, counts of white blood cells and platelets, and percentage of neutrophil leucocytes were significantly lower, while the hemoglobin level was significantly higher in the observation group than in the control group (P<0.05). A total of 124 HSP patients (99.2%) in the observation group had a full recovery or improvement, and the overall cure rate and improvement rate showed no significant differences between two groups (P>0.05). Only 2.4% of the patients (3 cases) in the observation group had recurrent attack during follow-up, which was significantly lower than that in the control group (16.7%; P<0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Childhood HSP on the Tibetan Plateau shows partial differences in disease characteristics, clinical manifestations, and laboratory measurements compared with that in the plain area. The overall prognosis is better and the recurrent rate is lower among HSP children on the Tibetan Plateau.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Shannan People's Hospital, Shannan, Tibet 856000, China. carreras@263.net.
authors.forename: Zhen
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Lin
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.forename: Hao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Xiong
authors.forename: Zhu
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Gang
authors.forename: Jian-Xin
authors.initials: JX
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Yu-Ping
authors.initials: YP
authors.lastname: Deng
authors.forename: Qu-Zhen
authors.initials: QZ
authors.lastname: Dawa
authors.forename: Zha-Xi
authors.initials: ZX
authors.lastname: Pubu
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D011695:IgA Vasculitis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000209:etiology; D008297:Male; D011379:Prognosis; D018609:Tibet