The Prevalence of Dengue Cases and Its Associated Factors Among Geriatric Patients Admitted to Hospital Pakar Universiti Sains Malaysia

Abstract

Background: Dengue in elderly individuals is an increasingly important yet understudied area. There is a need to identify individuals in this population likely to progress to severe disease. This study aimed to determine dengue prevalence and associated factors among geriatric patients admitted to Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), Kelantan.

Methods: This retrospective study was conducted among the geriatric age group with dengue fever who were admitted to wards of Hospital USM from January to December 2018–2020. Information, including patient demographics, vital signs and blood investigations, was obtained from the laboratory information system and secondary data. From the data, we could determine whether there were associations between these variables and admission. The outcomes of patient admission (discharge home or death) were also studied.

Results: A total of 204 patients were included in this study. Among those 204 patients, 83.8% (n = 171) were admitted to the ward, and 16.2% (n = 33) were discharged. More than half of them came from Kota Bharu (71.6%). The patients' ages ranged from 60 to 94 years, with a median age of 66 years (IQR = 8.00). The study also revealed that most patients had NS1 dengue antigen (47.5%). Most of the patients had hypertension (n (%) = 135 (66.2)). Two variables were significantly associated with dengue fever among geriatric patients. The platelet count and ALP level were found to be significantly associated factors.

Conclusion: There is a high prevalence of admission to the ward for geriatric patients with dengue fever. A low platelet count and elevated ALP are significant factors for admission. However, other blood parameters, such as AST and ALT, should be considered when determining admission status based on many studies. The mortality rate is relatively low among geriatric dengue patients.