Mirkarimi Mohammadreza, Alisamir Mohsen, Saraf Salar, Heidari Solmaz, Barouti Shahriar, Mohammadi Shooka
Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran.
Int J Pediatr. 2020 Nov 17;2020:8844420. doi: 10.1155/2020/8844420. eCollection 2020.
Lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) is the main cause of pediatric mortality and morbidity in low- and middle-income countries.
This study was carried out to determine the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of children with LRTI.
A retrospective study was conducted on all pediatric patients who were hospitalized due to LRTI in Abuzar Hospital (Ahvaz, Iran) during one year. Incomplete medical records and children who were treated on an outpatient basis, as well as infants younger than 1 month of age, were excluded. The patients were evaluated in terms of epidemiological, clinical, and paraclinical characteristics.
A total of 303 hospitalized children and infants were identified. Their mean age was 29.09 ± 38.96 months (range 1 month-15 years), and 59.4% of them were males. The highest frequency of patients was at the age below one year (50.8%, = 154). Pneumonia and bronchitis were the most common LRTIs. Respiratory (54.6%) and neurological (21.6%) diseases were the most prevalent underlying medical conditions. Admission was more common in winter ( = 120, 39.6%) and spring ( = 79, 26.1%). The mean length of stay (LOS) in the hospital was 8.2 ± 5.5 days, and the overall mortality rate was 11.6%. In addition, 65 patients were severely underweight and 271 patients were malnourished. Moreover, there was a significant association between mortality and disease diagnosis ( < 0.05). Furthermore, there was a significant association between having an underlying disease and consanguineous parents ( < 0.01), as well as the frequency of hospitalization ( < 0.001).
Additional studies are required to determine factors contributing to disease severity among children with LRTI to develop appropriate preventive and therapeutic strategies.
下呼吸道感染（LRTI）是低收入和中等收入国家儿童死亡和发病的主要原因。
本研究旨在确定LRTI患儿的临床和流行病学特征。
对一年内因LRTI在阿布尔医院（伊朗阿瓦士）住院的所有儿科患者进行回顾性研究。排除不完整的病历、门诊治疗的儿童以及1个月以下的婴儿。对患者的流行病学、临床和辅助临床特征进行评估。
共确定303名住院儿童和婴儿。他们的平均年龄为29.09±38.96个月（范围1个月至15岁），其中59.4%为男性。患者频率最高的年龄段是1岁以下（50.8%，n = 154）。肺炎和支气管炎是最常见的LRTI。呼吸系统疾病（54.6%）和神经系统疾病（21.6%）是最常见的基础疾病。冬季（n = 120，39.6%）和春季（n = 79，26.1%）入院更为常见。住院平均时长（LOS）为8.2±5.5天，总死亡率为11.6%。此外，65名患者严重体重不足，271名患者营养不良。而且，死亡率与疾病诊断之间存在显著关联（P < 0.05）。此外，基础疾病与近亲结婚父母之间存在显著关联（P < 0.01），以及住院频率之间存在显著关联（P < 0.001）。
需要进一步研究以确定导致LRTI患儿疾病严重程度的因素，从而制定适当的预防和治疗策略。
