Journal of Clinical Pediatrics ›› 2026, Vol. 44 ›› Issue (6): 564-572.doi: 10.12372/jcp.2026.25e0439

• Original Article • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Analysis of clinical characteristics of children with pneumonia complicated with plastic bronchitis and establishment and validation of risk prediction model

LUO Zihao1, LI Shaojun2, REN Peizhen1, WANG Yanhong1, GENG Gang1()   

  1. 1 Department of Respiratory, Children’s Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, National Clinical Research Center for Child Health and Disorders, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Child Development and Disorders, Chongqing Key Laboratory of Pediatrics, Chongqing 400014, China
    2 Department of Emergency, Children’s Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, National Clinical Research Center for Child Health and Disorders, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Child Development and Disorders, Chongqing Key Laboratory of Pediatrics, Chongqing 400014, China
  • Received:2025-04-22 Revised:2025-11-04 Accepted:2026-04-23 Published:2026-06-15 Online:2026-06-04
  • Contact: GENG Gang E-mail:genggang550928@126.com

Abstract:

Objective To characterize the clinical features and independent risk factors for plastic bronchitis (PB) in children with pneumonia, and to develop and validate a clinically applicable nomogram for early risk stratification. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on the data of children hospitalized from January 2018 to January 2025, who were diagnosed with pneumonia and underwent bronchoscopy. Stratified sampling was used to divide the data into a training set and a test set at a ratio of 7∶3, ensuring that the PB incidence rate in both sets was approximately 7.0%. After collinearity analysis, variables were selected using LASSO combined with logistic regression, and then included in weighted logistic regression to establish a prediction model. A nomogram was constructed, and the model was validated through receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves, calibration curves, and decision curve analysis (DCA) curves. Results Among 2697 eligible children, 190 (7.0%) developed PB. Bootstrap aralysis of the weighted cogistic regression model identified nine independent predictors: asthma history (OR=1.67, 95% CI: 1.24-2.15, P<0.001), tachypnea (OR=2.01, 95% CI: 1.54-2.64, P<0.001), fever duration (OR=4.00, 95% CI: 3.24-5.83, P<0.001), pleural effusion (OR=1.53, 95% CI: 1.19-1.94, P<0.001), airway obstruction on CT reconstruction (OR=2.42, 95% CI: 1.77-3.87, P<0.001), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) (OR=1.63, 95% CI: 1.28-2.25, P<0.001), platelet count (OR=0.54, 95% CI: 0.33-0.72, P<0.001), fibrinogen (OR=1.48, 95% CI: 1.12-2.08, P=0.004), and D-dimer (OR=1.46, 95% CI: 1.20-1.80, P=0.006). The nomogram demonstrated good predictive performance in the test set with an AUC of =0.921,(95% CI: 0.88-0.96; P<0.05). Conclusion PB is a rare but severe complication of pediatric pneumonia, associated with distinct and quantifiable clinical and laboratory features. The validated nomogram provides a practical, interpretable, and statistically robust tool for early identification of high-risk children—enabling timely bronchoscopic evaluation and intervention.

Key words: plastic bronchitis, clinical characteristics, risk factor, prediction model, child

CLC Number: 

  • R72