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. 2018 Jul 24;19(1):185.
doi: 10.1186/s12882-018-0976-4.

Varicella infections in patients with end stage renal disease: a systematic review

Chong Yau Ong  1 , Sher Guan Low  2   3 , Farhad Fakhrudin Vasanwala  4   3 , Shashidhar Baikunje  5   6 , Lian Leng Low  3   7
Affiliations

Varicella infections in patients with end stage renal disease: a systematic review

Chong Yau Ong et al. BMC Nephrol. .

Abstract

Background: End stage renal disease (ESRD) is on the rise globally. Varicella infection among adult patients with ESRD has been reported to lead to multiple complications and even death. While varicella vaccination has been recommended in paediatric renal patients; recommendation on varicella vaccination among adult patients with ESRD remained sparse. This review is aimed at evaluating the impact of varicella infection among adult patients with ESRD and make a recommendation for vaccination.

Methods: Three databases (PubMed, Embase and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL)) were searched in April 2018 with keywords 'varicella, chronic kidney failure, chronic kidney disease, renal replacement therapy, kidney transplantation, end stage renal disease, end stage renal failure, chicken pox, vaccine, vaccination and complications'.

Results: 29 articles were selected for review. The studies were mainly case reports, and they included measured outcomes: prevalence of seronegativity, impact (morbidity, length of stay, and mortality) of varicella among patients with ESRD, seroconversion rates and safety of varicella vaccination. The prevalence of seronegativity among varicella-infected ESRD adults was found to be at 42 to 100%. Nineteen deaths were reported. At least 54 patients have had complications from varicella infection. Seroconversion rate post vaccination was found to be around 64-94%.

Conclusion: Varicella is associated with significant morbidity and mortality rates in adult patients with ESRD. Varicella vaccination should be considered for the vulnerable, seronegative patients.

Keywords: Chickenpox; End stage renal disease; End stage renal failure; Impact; Morbidity; Mortality; Varicella; Varicella vaccine.

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Conflict of interest statement

Ethics approval and consent to participate

No ethics approval or consent is needed based on institution’s guidelines.

Consent for publication

Not applicable.

Competing interests

All authors declare that they have no competing interests.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Details of article selection process in the literature search
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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