Gender Differences in Childhood Lyme Neuroborreliosis
Table 2
Differences in numbers and clinical and laboratorial characteristics between boys and girls in 142 children hospitalized with Lyme neuroborreliosis (LNB) at Stavanger University Hospital during 2001–2009.
All children ()
Boys ()
Girls ()
Boys versus girls ( value)
All children with LNB (%)
73 (51)
69 (49)
0.89
Confirmed LNB, (%)
91 (64)
46 (63)
45 (65)
0.86
Probable LNB, (%)
51 (36)
27 (37)
24 (35)
0.78
Acute facial palsy, (%)
104 (73)
45 (62)
59 (86)
0.001
Headache and neck stiffness; (%)
33 (23)
21 (28)
12 (17)
0.11
Headache and/or neck stiffness as the only symptom (%)
29 (20)
22 (30)
7 (10)
0.003
History of erythema migrans, (%)
33 (23)
15 (21)
18 (26)
0.44
Age (years), median (IQR)
6 (5–8)
7 (5–9)
6 (4–7)
0.005
Age, variance
0.2
Month of occurrence, variance
0.84
Days of symptoms on admission, median (IQR)
5 (2–14)
7 (3–16)
4 (1–10)
0.008
CSF WBC count × 106/L, median (IQR)
166 (90–340)
202 (101–430)
131 (77–280)
0.004
CSF protein, mg/L, median (IQR)
520 (340–755)
560 (385–795)
480 (330–700)
0.083
CSF glucose, mmol/L, median (IQR)
3.0 (2.8–3.4)
3.0 (2.8–3.3)
3.1 (2.8–3.4)
0.57
Pos BB Ab ; BB index/s-BB IgM/s-BB IgG
91/113/85
46/58/42
45/55/43
0.86/0.86/0.77
BB: Borrelia burgdorferi. 2 girls and 1 boy had ECM but negative BB Ab tests and therefore were diagnosed as probable LNB.
