Clinical Presentations of HHV-6 Infection in Infants and Children in Kuwait: A Retrospective Study

Abstract

Clinical manifestations of human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) have not been clearly defined, and the role of HHV-6 in human disease among infants and children in Kuwait remains to be fully elucidated. A retrospective study covering the period between 2008 and 2014 was conducted on infants and children aged from 1 month to 5 years. Blood and CSF samples from infants and children who presented with symptoms suggestive HHV-6 infection were subjected to PCR test for HHV-6. Results showed that 9.3% (n = 42) of infants and children were positive for HHV-6. Fever was the most noticeable symptoms, presenting in 50% (n = 21) of the patients. Also, neutropenia was highly associated with HHV-6 infection, where it presented in 35.8% (n = 15) of infants and children. Our results provided important information about the clinical outcome of HHV-6 infection among infants and children in Kuwait.