Brucellosis in childhood: retrospective evaluation of 37 cases and review of the literature

Introduction: The aim of this study is to evaluate the demographic, clinical and laboratory characteristics and treatment results of pediatric patients followed up with the diagnosis of brucellosis in our clinic. Methods: Patients who were followed up with the diagnosis of brucellosis in Kayseri Training and Research Hospital, Pediatric Infectious Diseases Clinic between October 2016 and December 2018 were retrospectively analyzed. Results: A total of 37 patients, 26 (70.3%) male, were included in the study. The mean age of the patients whose ages ranged from 1 to 17 years was 9.3±4.3 years. Unpasteurized milk and/or dairy products were consumed in 86.5% of the patients and 48.6% had a family history of brucellosis. Joint pain (75.7%) was the most common presenting complaint. In the laboratory evaluation, 8.1% of the patients had leukopenia, 2.7% had thrombocytopenia and 21.4% had ALT elevation. Doxycycline plus rifampicin (43.2%) was the most commonly preferred treatment regimen. Addition of aminoglycoside to initial therapy in hospitalized patients was statistically higher than in outpatients (81.2% vs. 23.8%) (p=0.001). During the follow-up, relapse developed in a total of 4 (10.8%) patients, 3 of whom were outpatients. There was no statistical relationship between the initial treatment regimen and relapse (p=0.418). Conclusion: In conclusion, brucellosis should be kept in mind in terms of differential diagnosis in patients who present with joint pain in our country and who have cytopenia and/or isolated aminotransferase elevation in their investigations. Keywords: Child, Brucellosis, Leukopenia, Relapse, Thrombocytopenia