Demographic and clinical factors associated with dengue mortality in Colombia: a case-control study

Objective. To identify demographic and clinical factors associated with mortality due to severe dengue in five departments in Colombia. Materials and methods. Case-control study with patients admitted between 2009 and 2013. The cases were patients who died from dengue and the controls where patients with severe dengue who survived the disease.A multivariate analysis using the Mantel-Haenszel procedure identified risk factors associated with dengue mortality. Results. We analyzed 58 cases and 121 controls and identified four factors:in-hospital administration of dypirone (ORa=6.38 95%CI 2.41-16.86) and paracetamol (ORa= 0.25 95%CI 0.10-0.61), comorbidities (ORa=3.52 95%CI 1.51-8.18), and a prior visit to the hospital (ORa=3.99 95%CI 1.63-9.77). Conclusions. Administration of dypirone in patients with severe dengue was associated with a higher risk of mortality. Considering that 20 countries have banned dipyrone because of its adverse effects, we advise against its use.