Paediatric inpatient morbidity patterns and drug usage in a teaching hospital serving an underdeveloped area.

Morbidity patterns and drug usage in hospitalized children in a developing area were prospectively studied. The study group consisted of 347 children (age 0-12 yrs) representing all admissions to a paediatric unit over a six month period. Respiratory tract diseases (30.5%) and infectious diseases (26.1%) were the most common reasons for hospitalization. Tuberculosis was the most common infectious disease seen among the hospitalized children. Antimicrobials (60.8%), iron preparations (45.5%), vitamins (43.2%) and antipyretics (29.9%) were the most frequently prescribed groups of drugs. Ampicillin was the most commonly used antimicrobial. Adverse drug reactions were seen in 1.7% of the children. The overall mortality was 9.2%. The mean length of stay was 7.9 days and the mean number of drugs used was 3.4 per patient. More than 4 drugs were prescribed in 54.4% of children. Approximately two thirds received parenteral therapy.