Varicella in a Paediatric Intensive Care Unit: 10-year review from Starship Children's Hospital, New Zealand.

AIMS: Varicella is now a vaccine-preventable disease but is generally considered benign, making it a low priority for a funded universal immunisation scheme. We aimed to increase the knowledge of the severity, morbidity and mortality caused by varicella, by a review of cases requiring paediatric intensive care in New Zealand where vaccine is available but not funded.

METHODS: This is a retrospective chart review of children admitted to the paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) over a 10-year period (July 2001-July 2011) identified from the PICU database with a primary or secondary code for varicella.

RESULTS: Thirty-four cases were identified and 26 cases were included. Of the 26 cases, 84.6% were Maori or Pacific Island ethnicity, 54% had no preceding medical condition and 23% were immunocompromised. Main PICU admission reasons were neurologic (38.5%), secondary bacterial sepsis or shock (26.9%), respiratory (15.4%), disseminated varicella (11.5%), or other causes (7.7%). Fifty per cent of children required inotropic support and 81% invasive ventilation. Four children died (15%), three of whom were immunocompromised. A further eight children (31%) had ongoing disability at hospital discharge.

CONCLUSION: Varicella, or its secondary complications, requiring paediatric intensive care, carries high mortality, particularly for immunocompromised patients, and long-term morbidities, mostly affecting previously healthy children.