COMPARATIVE EFFICACY OF DIAGNOSTIC PROCEDURES IN PNEUMONIA IN CHILDREN.

Various investigative methods used in diagnosis, in 200 children with pneumonia, were analyzed to establish the diagnostic superiority. Lung juice aspirate culture yielded 52.4% positivity and laryngeal swab culture 52%. Gastric aspirate culture was positive in 36% cases and blood culture positivity was in 10% cases only. Thus laryngeal swab culture is as effective as lung-juice aspiration culture in the isolation of the organisms causing lower respiratory tract infections. Gastric aspirate smear examination for polymorphonuclear leucocyte count is helpful in screening bacterial pneumonias.