TY - JOUR T1 - Descriptive study of malaria cases in the paediatric population in a reference hospital in Valencia, Spain, between 1993 and 2015 JO - Anales de Pediatría (English Edition) T2 - AU - Ramírez Cuentas,John Helmut AU - Urtasun Erburu,Andrea AU - Roselló Guijarro,Mireia AU - Garrido Jareño,Marta AU - Peman García,Javier AU - Otero Reigada,María del Carmen SN - 23412879 M3 - 10.1016/j.anpede.2019.03.004 DO - 10.1016/j.anpede.2019.03.004 UR - https://www.analesdepediatria.org/en-descriptive-study-malaria-cases-in-articulo-S2341287919302133 AB - IntroductionMalaria is considered to be the fourth leading cause of infant mortality after pneumonia, complications related to premature birth, and perinatal asphyxia. Material and methodsA retrospective and descriptive study of cases of malaria confirmed and treated by the Paediatric Infectious Diseases Unit (age lower than 15 years) at the La Fe Hospital, Valencia, over the period 1993–2015. ResultsA total of 54 cases of paediatric malaria were diagnosed in the period 1993–2015, with 51.8% of these occurring in males, and 46.2% of patients were aged below 5 years. The majority of children came from Equatorial Guinea (68.5%). Only 5.6% had received antimalarial prophylaxis. Plasmodium falciparum was found to be the causal species in 81.4% of cases. Seven patients (13%) presented with complicated malaria. The most widely used treatment was quinine, either alone or in combination with other drugs. Atovaquone/proguanil was used from 2010 onwards and was indicated in 20.3% of the patients. The combination of artesunate/piperaquine/dihydroartemisinin began to be used in 2013. No deaths or relevant side effects were reported, and the clinical response was favourable in all children (100%). ConclusionsMalaria is still a prevalent disease in our population, a consequence of immigration, and tourism to endemic countries. Malaria should be considered as a likely diagnosis in a febrile child who comes from, or has travelled to, an endemic region in the past year. ER -