HOSPITALIZATION FOR VARICELLA IN
ISRAEL
Finkelstein Y, Marcus N, Shnitman N, Chodick G, Garty BZ,
Schneider Children抯 Medical Center of Israel, Petah Tikva,
Israel
Objective: To determine the impact of Varicella on
children in Israel. This retrospective study was conducted at Schneider
Children抯 Medical Center of Israel, which serves a population of
approximately 500,000, before the introduction of Varicella vaccine in
Israel. The estimated hospitalization rate of children with Varicella in
Israel is 1/300 cases.
Methods: Records of 283 children hospitalized due to
Varicella infection during a 5-year period (1995-2000) in the prevaccine
era were reviewed.
Results: The mean age of the study group (n = 283) was
29 months (range: 1 month ?18 years). Fifty-two percent were male. The mean
hospital stay was 4.7 days. Two hundred and fifty children (88.3%) had
complications that included bacterial skin and soft tissue infections
(48%), pneumonia (19%), gastrointestinal manifestations (15%) and
neurological complications (10%). These included febrile seizures (8%),
meningoencephalitis (2%) and cerebellar ataxia (2%). Seventy-one percent of
the patients received intravenous antibiotic treatment and 26% received
Acyclovir; 31 children (11%) were immunocompromised. There were no deaths.
The direct estimated cost of the disease of the hospitalized children was
US$532,000.
Conclusion: Varicella causes substantial morbidity
in children and the economic burden of this infection is considerable.