Oral Manifestations and Hematological Assessments of Children with Measles
Hayder Mahdi Idan, Saif Hakeem Tofiq, Anfal Shakir MotibAbstract
Background:
Measles is an acute, febrile, exanthematous infection, that is, highly communicable and can recur every 2–5 years, typically during winter-spring outbreaks.
Objectives:
The objectives of the study were to determine the oral manifestations and hematological profiles of patients with measles and compare them with those of a control group.
Materials and Methods:
A case–control study comprising 111 children, all under the age of 12. The study included 91 children with measles (48 male and 43 female) from Al-Batoul Teaching Hospital in Diyala Governorate, and 20 children in the control group. The mouth was examined, and the results were noted, and blood tests, including positive measles immunoglobulin G antibodies, to confirm the diagnosis were performed, including for all children participating in the research.
Results:
The results showed that the most frequent oral findings in patients are Koplik’s spots (76.92%), followed by sore throat (37.36%) and angular cheilitis (7.29%), with a statistically significant correlation. In the control group, the hemoglobin level was statistically non-significantly increased as related with a mean ± SD (13.12 ± 0.16) versus mean ± SD (12.27 ± 0.23). White blood cell (WBC), neutrophil, and lymphocyte counts were significantly higher in the control group compared to the patients, with a statistically highly significant association. On the other hand, there was no difference in platelet count between the patient and control groups.
Conclusion:
The most frequent oral findings in patients were Koplik’s spots. The WBC, neutrophil, and lymphocyte counts in patients were lower than those in the control group. It is essential to detect the WBC, neutrophil, and lymphocyte count in patients with measles.