1. Endemic bacterial meningitis in Sudanese children: aetiology, clinical findings, treatment and short-term outcome.
- Author
-
Salih MA, el Hag AI, Sid Ahmed H, Bushara M, Yasin I, Omer MI, Hofvander Y, and Olcen P
- Subjects
- Bacterial Infections cerebrospinal fluid, Bacterial Infections complications, Bacterial Vaccines, Child, Child, Preschool, Female, Haemophilus influenzae, Hearing Disorders etiology, Hemiplegia etiology, Humans, Infant, Male, Meningitis cerebrospinal fluid, Meningitis complications, Meningitis, Aseptic epidemiology, Meningitis, Haemophilus epidemiology, Meningitis, Meningococcal epidemiology, Meningitis, Pneumococcal epidemiology, Sudan epidemiology, Bacterial Infections epidemiology, Meningitis epidemiology
- Abstract
During the period April 1985 to November 1986 (18 months), 196 children (of age greater than 1 month) admitted to the Children's Emergency Hospital in Khartoum, Sudan, with clinical suspicion of meningitis/meningoencephalitis were followed up prospectively. Bacterial meningitis was diagnosed by culture, direct microscopy and/or antigen-detecting assays (co-agglutination and enzyme immunoassay) in 44 infants (25 Haemophilus influenzae type b, 8 Neisseria meningitidis, 7 Streptococcus pneumoniae, 3 enterobacteria and one mixed infection), aseptic meningitis in 52, cerebral malaria in 4 and febrile convulsions in 96. The majority of cases of bacterial meningitis were boys and 57% of those in whom H. influenzae was the commonest isolate were less than 1 year old. The presenting signs and symptoms are described as well as the transient and permanent short-term sequelae. The total mortality from bacterial meningitis was 19%, permanent neurological sequelae were seen in 26% of survivors. Prospective follow-up, including audiometry, of 35 children 1-2 months after discharge showed that 11% had hemiplegia and 20% had hearing impairment. The potential impact of vaccination against invasive H. influenzae infections is discussed.
- Published
- 1990
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