ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest rates of child mortality worldwide. Little is known about post-hospital outcomes after an index hospitalization for older children. We determined 12-month post-hospital mortality rate and identified factors associated with higher mortality. METHODS: In this prospective cohort study, we enrolled children 2-12 years of age admitted to the pediatric wards of two public hospitals in northwestern Tanzania. Participants or proxies were contacted at 3, 6 and 12 months post-hospitalization. The primary outcome measured was mortality. Factors associated with mortality were determined using Cox regression analysis. RESULTS: A total of 506 participants were enrolled. In-hospital mortality rate was 7.7% (39/506). Of the 467 participants discharged, the post-hospital mortality rate was 10.1% (47/467). Sickle cell disease (Hazard Ratio (HR) 3.32, 95% CI 1.44-7.68), severe malnutrition (HR 3.19, 95% CI 1.18-8.57), neurologic diseases (HR 3.51, 95% CI 1.35-9.11), heart disease (HR 7.11, 95% CI, 2.89-17.51), cancer (HR 11.79, 95% CI 4.95-28.03), and septic shock (HR 4.64, 95% CI 1.42-15.08) had higher association with mortality compared to other diagnoses. The risk factors significantly associated with mortality included older age (HR 1.01, 95% CI 1.00-1.08), lower hemoglobin level (HR 0.83, 95% CI 0.76-0.90), lower Glasgow Coma Scale (HR 0.66, 95% CI 0.59-0.74), history of decreased urine output (HR 2.87, 95% CI 1.49-5.53), higher respiratory rate (HR 1.02, 95% CI 1.00-1.03), estimated glomerular filtration rate less than 60 ml/min/1.73m2 (binary) (HR 1.84, 95% CI 1.10-3.10), and lower oxygen saturation (HR 0.96, 95% CI 0.92-0.99). CONCLUSIONS: Post-hospital mortality is disturbingly high among children 2-12 years of age in Tanzania. Post-hospital interventions are urgently needed especially for older children with chronic illnesses.
Subject(s)
Child Mortality , Patient Discharge , Age Factors , Child , Child, Preschool , Female , Follow-Up Studies , Hospital Mortality , Hospitals, Public , Humans , Male , Prospective Studies , Risk Factors , Tanzania/epidemiology , Time FactorsABSTRACT
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection has been postulated to alter the natural history of cholera, including increased susceptibility to infection, severity of illness, and chronic carriage of Vibrio cholerae Haiti has a generalized HIV epidemic with an adult HIV prevalence of 1.9% and recently suffered a cholera epidemic. We conducted a prospective study at the cholera treatment center (CTC) of GHESKIO in Haiti to characterize the coinfection. Adults admitted at the CTC for acute diarrhea were invited to participate in the study. Vital signs, frequency, and volume of stools and/or vomiting were monitored, and single-dose doxycycline was administered. After counseling, participants were screened for HIV by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and for cholera by culture. Of 729 adults admitted to the CTC, 99 (13.6%) had HIV infection, and 457 (63%) had culture-confirmed cholera. HIV prevalence was three times higher in patients without cholera (23%, 63/272) than in those with culture-confirmed cholera (7.9%, 36/457). HIV prevalence in patients with culture-confirmed cholera (7.9%) was four times higher than the adult prevalence in Port-au-Prince (1.9%). Of the 36 HIV-infected patients with cholera, 25 (69%) had moderate/severe dehydration versus 302/421 (72%) in the HIV negative. Of 30 HIV-infected patients with weekly stool cultures performed after discharge, 29 (97%) were negative at week 1. Of 50 HIV-negative patients with weekly stool cultures, 49 (98%) were negative at week 1. In countries with endemic HIV infection, clinicians should consider screening patients presenting with suspected cholera for HIV coinfection.
