title: Ebola Virus Disease in Children, Sierra Leone, 2014-2015.
abstract: Little is known about potentially modifiable factors in Ebola virus disease in children. We undertook a retrospective cohort study of children <13 years old admitted to 11 Ebola holding units in the Western Area, Sierra Leone, during 2014-2015 to identify factors affecting outcome. Primary outcome was death or discharge after transfer to Ebola treatment centers. All 309 Ebola virus-positive children 2 days-12 years old were included; outcomes were available for 282 (91%). Case-fatality was 57%, and 55% of deaths occurred in Ebola holding units. Blood test results showed hypoglycemia and hepatic/renal dysfunction. Death occurred swiftly (median 3 days after admission) and was associated with younger age and diarrhea. Despite triangulation of information from multiple sources, data availability was limited, and we identified no modifiable factors substantially affecting death. In future Ebola virus disease epidemics, robust, rapid data collection is vital to determine effectiveness of interventions for children.
authors.forename: Felicity
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Fitzgerald
authors.forename: Asad
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Naveed
authors.forename: Kevin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Wing
authors.forename: Musa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gbessay
authors.forename: J C G
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Ross
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Checchi
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Youkee
authors.forename: Mohammed Boie
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Jalloh
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Baion
authors.forename: Ayeshatu
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mustapha
authors.forename: Hawanatu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Jah
authors.forename: Sandra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lako
authors.forename: Shefali
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Oza
authors.forename: Sabah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Boufkhed
authors.forename: Reynold
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Feury
authors.forename: Julia A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Bielicki
authors.forename: Diana M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Gibb
authors.forename: Nigel
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Klein
authors.forename: Foday
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Sahr
authors.forename: Shunmay
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yeung
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003695:Delivery of Health Care; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D019142:Hemorrhagic Fever, Ebola / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000401:mortality / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D012807:Sierra Leone / Q000453:epidemiology; D016896:Treatment Outcome
keywords: Ebola; Ebola virus disease; Sierra Leone; children; viruses