Skip to main content

Table 2 Infectious conditions diagnosed in febrile children attending HUCSH, 2018–2019

From: Clinical management and outcomes of acute febrile illness in children attending a tertiary hospital in southern Ethiopia

Infectious conditions diagnosed*

Frequency (%) (N = 433)

Acute respiratory infections

274 (63.3)

Tonsillopharyngitis

45 (10.4)

Unspecified URTIs

52 (12.0)

Pneumonia

177 (40.9)

Other LRTIs

7 (1.6)

Acute diarrhoea

82 (18.9)

Meningitis

10 (2.3)

Infective endocarditis

6 (1.4)

Otitis media

5 (1.2)

Sepsis$

5 (1.2)

Disseminated tuberculosis

4 (0.9)

Tinea capitis/corporis

3 (0.7)

Lymphadenitis

2 (0.5)

Bacterial conjunctivitis

2 (0.5)

Pyomyositis

2 (0.5)

Superinfected haemangioma

2 (0.5)

Malaria†

14 (3.2)a

HIV infection†

3 (0.7)a

Bacteraemia/candidaemiaℼ

27 (6.4)b

Urinary tract infectionℼ

74 (18.4)c

Other infectious conditions‡

5 (1.2)

Undifferentiated fever#

61 (14.1)

  1. URTIs upper respiratory tract infections, LRTIs lower respiratory infections, HIV human immunodeficiency virus
  2. *Diagnoses made based on clinical investigations at initial management unless otherwise specified
  3. Children from whom samples were obtained for blood smear microscopy and HIV testing: a(N = 431); blood culture b(N = 421); urine culture c(N = 402)
  4. †Diagnosis made at presentation based on laboratory investigations
  5. ℼDiagnosis made on follow-up based on culture results
  6. ‡Spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (n = 1), neck abscess (n = 1), mumps (n = 1), appendiceal mass (n = 1), scabies (n = 1)
  7. $Sepsis with bacteraemia (n = 2), sepsis without bacteraemia (n = 1), no adequate blood sample for culture (n = 2)
  8. #Cases with no identified source of infection for the fever on clinical and laboratory investigations conducted