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An amputated hand in a child is considered an absolute indication for re-implantation. A key contributor to good functional outcome is the level of amputation, type of injury, warm ischemic time as well hand rehabilitation services. The role of parents in rehabilitation services has not been well defined. In our case report, we share the functional outcome of a six year old child that was successfully re-implanted followed by multiple sessions of physiotherapy during the Covid 19 pandemic period done by the parents. The functional outcomes for motor and sensory were closely comparable to the non-injured hand at one year of follow up. Parents should play an active role in rehabilitation of paediatric patients after re-implantation. They provide a supplementary approach to rehabilitation that could be cheaper and effective in ensuring good functional outcome., Competing Interests: None., (© 2024 The Authors.)

Background: Cerebral malaria is still a major cause of death in children in sub-Saharan Africa. Among survivors, debilitating neurological sequelae can leave children with permanent cognitive impairments and societal stigma, resulting in taxing repercussions for their families. This study investigated the effect of delay in presentation to medical care on outcome in children with cerebral malaria in Malawi., Methods: This retrospective study included participants enrolled in a longstanding study of cerebral malaria between 2001 and 2021 and considered coma duration prior to arrival at hospital (with or without anti-malarial treatment), HIV status, blood lactate levels at admission and age as factors that could affect clinical outcome. Outcomes were categorized as full recovery, sequelae at the time of discharge, or death. A multinomial regression was fit and run controlling for coma duration, HIV status, lactate levels and age, to determine the association between each explanatory variable and outcome., Results: A total of 1663 children with cerebral malaria, aged 6 months to 14 years were included. Longer coma duration (in hours) was associated with greater odds of developing sequelae (OR = 1.023, 95% CI 1.007-1.039, p = 0.006) but not death (OR = 1.00, 95% CI 0.986-1.015, p = 0.961). Younger age (in months) was also correlated with higher rates of sequelae, (OR = 0.990, 95% CI 0.983-0.997, p = 0.004) but not with increased mortality (OR = 0.998, 95% CI 0.993-1.003, p = 0.335). Blood lactate levels on admission were correlated with mortality (OR = 1.125, 95% CI 1.090-1.161, p < 0.001) but not associated with increased rates of sequelae (OR = 1.016, 95% CI 0.973-1.060, p = 0.475). Positive HIV status and treatment with an anti-malarial (artemisinin or non-artemisinin-based) prior to arrival at the hospital were not significantly associated with either adverse outcome., Conclusions: In Malawian children with cerebral malaria, higher rates of sequelae were significantly associated with extended coma duration prior to admission and younger age. Mortality rates were correlated with increased lactate levels on admission. The differential effects of variables on clinical outcomes suggest that there may be different pathogenic pathways leading to sequelae and death. Actions taken by parents and health care professionals are critical in defining when patients arrive at hospital and determining their ultimate outcome., (© 2022. The Author(s).)