title: Bacteraemia in children in the south-western Cape. A hospital-based survey.
abstract: During 1989, of the 8,524 children admitted to the paediatric wards of Tygerberg Hospital, 165 (1.96%) had bacteraemia. The incidence of community-acquired bacteraemias was 1.6% and that of nosocomial bacteraemias 0.5%. The most important community-acquired isolates were Streptococcus pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus and Neisseria meningitidis. The most important nosocomial isolates were Klebsiella and Salmonella spp. Both bacteraemia (relative risk (RR) = 2.08) and severe malnutrition (RR = 3.01) were more common in black patients. Overall, severe malnutrition was more common than mild malnutrition or a normal nutritional status in bacteraemic patients (odds radio (OR) = 3.17). Nineteen patients with bacteraemia died, there was a significantly higher case-fatality rate in patients with extreme malnutrition (P = 0.03; OR = 3.7). Gram-negative bacilli were found more commonly in patients with extreme malnutrition (OR = 5.4) and patients with nosocomial bacteraemia (OR = 4.6). Three of 39 patients (7.6%) with nosocomial bacteraemia had suppurative thrombophlebitis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics, University of Stellenbosch.
authors.forename: M F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Cotton
authors.forename: P J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Burger
authors.forename: W J
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Bodenstein
mesh_terms: D016470:Bacteremia / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003428:Cross Infection; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D009345:Neisseria meningitidis / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D013019:South Africa / Q000453:epidemiology; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000175:diagnosis; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D013290:Streptococcal Infections / Q000175:diagnosis; D013296:Streptococcus pneumoniae / Q000302:isolation & purification*