To investigate the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of hospitalized children with measles, and provide basis for measles prevention and control, clinical diagnosis and treatment.

Clinical data of 757 children with measles admitted to the Department of Pediatrics, Beijing Ditan Hospital, Capital Medical University from March 2009 to July 2019 were collected, retrospectively, including the onset time, gender, age, measles vaccination, measles patient contact history, clinical manifestations, complications, auxiliary examination, treatment and outcomes. Descriptive epidemiological methods were used to analyze the clinical data of 757 cases, the measurement data with normal distribution were expressed as mean ± standard deviation (± s), and the measurement data with skewed distribution were expressed as median (quartile) [M (P25, P75)]; enumeration data were expressed as the number of cases (%).

Total of 757 children with measles were collected, most [450 cases (59.4%)] occurred during March to May, including 505 boys (66.7%) and 252 girls (33.3%), the median age was [8.7 (6.7, 12)] months, among whom, children younger than one year old accounted for 71.7% (543/757); 653 children (86.3%) were not vaccinated against measles. Clinical manifestations were rash [100% (757/757], fever [99.5% (753/757], cough [72.0% (545/757] and measles mucosal plaque (Koplik plaque) [58.4% (442/757)], while the most common complication was pneumonia [77.5% (587/757)]. There were 16 children (2.0%) with pulmonary air leakage, among whom, 13 children (81.3%) with ediastinal emphysema and subcutaneous emphysema, including 7 children complicated with pneumothorax, and 3 children (18.7%) with pneumothorax alone. All the children were isolated according to respiratory infectious diseases and were given symptomatic supportive treatment. Total of 54 children (7.1%) were transferred to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) because of severe pneumonia and different degrees of hypoxemia, and 34 cases (62.9%) of them were treated with mechanical ventilation. Total of 738 children (97.5%) were cured and 19 children died, the case fatality rate was 2.5%.

Measles in children, with the peak season in spring and summer, is most common in boys under 1 year old who were not vaccinated against measles, and pneumonia is the most common complication, is prone to pulmonary air leakage, which can lead to death. It is necessary to strengthen measles vaccination in appropriate age children, identify and treat measles as early as possible, and pay attention to the diagnosis and treatment of complications.