title: [Neurological complications in the population of children with leukaemia].
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Leukaemia is the most frequent type of cancer at the paediatric age. The cure rate is 80% with intensive chemotherapy, which improves survival but also often increases the frequency of adverse side effects, including those of a neurological nature.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To describe the frequency and characteristics of the neurological complications (NC) in patients with acute lymphoid leukaemia (ALL) and acute myeloid leukaemia (AML), as well as to identify factors associated to their presence, neurological morbidity and survival rate.
  
  
  METHODS
  A retrospective study was conducted of the NC present in patients with ALL and AML between 1997 and 2012 treated and followed up by the child onco-haematology unit. The following variables were analysed: demographic data, oncological diagnosis, treatment and NC.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Altogether 157 patients were included, 145 without infiltration of the central nervous system at diagnosis and eight with infiltration (rate of NC of 14% and 12%, respectively). The most frequent NC were: neuropathies (31%), altered levels of consciousness (27%), convulsions (22%) and headache (12%). Forty per cent of the patients with NC presented sequelae but none of them died as a consequence of the NC. More NC were detected in the age group of children aged under 6 years with high-degree ALL, at higher levels of severity and in patients who had received a haematopoietic stem-cell transplant, all of them with statistically significant differences.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Neurological complications are common in patients with acute leukaemia, especially in those at a high-risk stage (above all if they are under the age of 6 years) and with haematopoietic stem-cell transplant. The associated mortality rate is low.
authors.affiliation: Hospital General Universitario Virgen de la Arrixaca, El Palmar, Espana.
authors.forename: Elena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Martínez-Cayuelas
authors.forename: Rosario
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Domingo-Jiménez
authors.forename: Juan F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Pascual-Gázquez
authors.forename: Eduardo
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Martínez-Salcedo
authors.forename: Helena
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Alarcón-Martínez
authors.forename: Mar
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bermúdez-Cortés
authors.forename: José L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Fuster-Soler
authors.forename: Virginia
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Pérez-Fernández
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D003244:Consciousness Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D016371:Cranial Irradiation / Q000009:adverse effects; D005260:Female; D006261:Headache / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D018380:Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D015470:Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy; D017254:Leukemic Infiltration; D008297:Male; D008578:Meninges / Q000473:pathology; D009422:Nervous System Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D054198:Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012640:Seizures / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D017741:Survivors; D019172:Transplantation Conditioning / Q000009:adverse effects