Table 2 Characteristics of children <18 years of age with malaria reported to GeoSentinel, January 2003–June 2016 (n = 325)
From: Malaria after international travel: a GeoSentinel analysis, 2003–2016
Characteristic | All children (n = 325) | 0–5 yearsa (n = 111) | 6–11 years (n = 86) | 12–17 years (n = 128) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Median age, years (range) | 8 (4–15) | 3 (2–4) | 8 (7–10) | 16 (14–17) |
Male, n (%) | 185 (57) | 54 (49) | 49 (57) | 83 (65) |
Travellers without pre-travel visit, n (%)b | 166 (53) | 56 (51) | 45 (54) | 65 (53) |
Reason for travel, n (%)c | ||||
VFR | 257 (80) | 88 (80) | 83 (97) | 86 (69) |
Tourism | 45 (14) | 20 (18) | 2 (2) | 23 (18) |
Business | 8 (2) | 2 (2) | 1 (1) | 5 (4) |
Missionaryd | 6 (2) | 1 (1) | 0 (0) | 5 (4) |
Student | 6 (2) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 6 (5) |
Region of exposure, n (%) | ||||
Sub-Saharan Africa | 274 (84)e | 100 (90) | 72 (84) | 102 (79) |
South Central Asia | 35 (11) | 10 (9) | 13 (15) | 12 (9) |
Southeast Asia | 9 (3) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 9 (7) |
North Africa | 2 (1) | 1 (1) | 0 (0) | 1 (1) |
Oceania | 2 (1) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 2 (2) |
South America | 2 (1) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 2 (2) |
Caribbean | 1 (<1) | 0 (0) | 1 (1) | 0 (0) |
Plasmodium species, n (%)f | ||||
P. falciparum | 237 (78) | 86 (84) | 63 (77) | 88 (73) |
P. vivax | 46 (15) | 10 (10) | 14 (17) | 22 (18) |
P. ovale | 15 (5) | 4 (4) | 5 (6) | 6 (5) |
P. malariae | 7 (2) | 2 (2) | 0 (0) | 5 (4) |
P. knowlesi | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) |
Median trip duration, days (IQR) | 43 (29–90) | 42 (28–85) | 57 (35–89) | 42 (28–108) |
Median days between return and presenting to a site (IQR) | 12 (6–22) | 13 (6–25) | 11 (7–20) | 12 (6–23) |
Hospitalized, n (%) | 237 (73) | 88 (79) | 66 (77) | 83 (65) |
Severe malaria, n (%) | 31 (10) | 13 (12) | 10 (12) | 8 (6) |