Predictors of unfavorable outcomes in enterovirus 71-related cardiopulmonary failure in children

Background: Enterovirus 71 (EV71) can sometimes cause fatal or disabling diseases in children; therefore EV71-infected children with cardiopulmonary failure were investigated at Chang Gung Children's Hospital to discover the prognostic predictors. Methods: We investigated 27 EV71-infected children with cardiopulmonary failure from May 2000 to September 2001 and analyzed their clinical data to find predictors associated with unfavorable outcomes of deaths or ventilator dependence. Results: Of the 27 patients, 8 (30%) died and 10 (37%) were ventilator-dependent. Troponin I levels correlated most strongly with fatality, with 5 of the 6 children with troponin I levels > 40 ng/ml dying ( P = 0.001). Other factors correlated with fatality were cerebrospinal fluid white blood cell count >= 100/mu L (P = 0.002) and initial systolic pressure <= 100 mm Hg (P = 0.05). Of the 19 survivors, 10 (53%) were left with central hypoventilation, dysphagia and/or limb weakness plus atrophy. The factors associated with ventilator dependence included higher inotrope equivalent (P < 0.001), duration of hypotension >= 40 hours, initial blood systolic pressure <= 100 mm Hg, positive EV71 isolation and age >= 12 months. Conclusions: Poor prognostic factors were related to cardiovascular and neurologic damage; therefore physicians may consider advanced cardiovascular support for EV71-infected children with cardiopulmonary failure.