Clinical Characteristics Associated with Mortality in Children with Critically Ill Influenza B in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit

Purpose: Analysis of the clinical characteristics of critically ill children with influenza B. Methods: This study is a retrospective study. It included 105 critically ill children with influenza B who were admitted to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) at the Children’s Hospital Affiliated with Zhengzhou University from January 2018 to December 2024. On the basis of their discharge outcomes, the patients were divided into a mortality group (n=11) and a survival group (n=94). We collected demographic and clinical data from the pediatric patients and compared the differences between the two groups. Results: The mortality rate among 105 critically ill children with influenza B was 10.48%. The incidence of cough was lower in the group of children who died than in the group of children who survived, whereas the incidence of abdominal pain, altered consciousness, seizures, mechanical ventilation, and respiratory failure was higher in the group of children who died than in the group of children who survived. Children in the mortality group had significantly higher levels of D-dimer, aspartate aminotransferase, r-glutamyl transpeptidase, lactate dehydrogenase, procalcitonin, and interleukin-6 than those in the survival group did. Conclusion: Children in the mortality group were older and had a lower incidence of cough than those in the survival group did. In the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU), characteristics associated with mortality in patients with influenza B include abdominal pain, altered consciousness, liver dysfunction, elevated inflammatory markers, or the need for mechanical ventilation. Children with influenza B admitted to the PICU often experience rapid disease progression and are prone to developing respiratory failure. Mechanical ventilation and respiratory failure are important clinical indicators of a severe deterioration in the condition of critically ill pediatric patients with influenza B in the PICU. Respiratory failure and circulatory failure are the direct causes of adverse outcomes in children in the mortality group. Keywords: pediatric intensive care unit, critically ill influenza B, death