These tools will no longer be maintained as of December 31, 2024. Archived website can be found here. PubMed4Hh GitHub repository can be found here. Contact NLM Customer Service if you have questions.


PUBMED FOR HANDHELDS

Search MEDLINE/PubMed


  • Title: Bacterial pathogens and outcome determinants of childhood pyogenic meningitis in Ilorin, Nigeria.
    Author: Johnson WB, Adedoyin OT, Abdulkarim AA, Olanrewaju WI.
    Journal: Afr J Med Med Sci; 2001 Dec; 30(4):295-303. PubMed ID: 14510107.
    Abstract:
    Empirical antimicrobial therapy remainsjustifiable in childhood pyogenic meningitis (CPM), but the continuing efficacy in a particular setting requires periodic microbiological surveillance. It was this need that informed the present five-year retrospective study of consecutive admissions for CPM at the Emergency Paediatric Unit (EPU) of the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital, Ilorin, Nigeria. Of the 71 cerebro-spinal fluid [CSF] analyses, 41 (57.6%) were Gram-smear positive (GSP). Gram-positive cocci (GPC) were identified in 23 (56.1%) smears, while 14 (34.2.%) had Gram-negative bacilli (GNB). Only three (7.3%) had Gram-negative diplococci (GND). Despite corroborative biochemical findings, the remaining 30 (42.3%), including two with tuberculous meningitis proved smear-negative. GPC cases had a mean age of 4.49 +/- 5.3yrs, GNB, 3.06 +/- 4.8yrs and GND, 4.47 +/- 4.9yrs. CSF isolates were made in 28 (39.4%) cases. Streptococcus pneumoniae accounted for a predominant 22 (78.6%) (P = 0.00), Haemophilus influenzae for 2 (7.1%), and Neisseria meningitidis for only 1 (3.5%) case. Whereas Strept. pneumoniae and H. influenzae isolates were uniformly sensitive to each of sultamicillin, cefuroxime, ceftriaxone and ceftazidime, 7.7% of Strept. pneumoniae were resistant to crystalline penicillin, 6.7% to ampicillin, and 69.2% to chloramphenicol; one of the two H. influenzae isolates was chloramphenicol-resistant. Amongst the 30 (42.3%) fatal cases, the length of stay was significantly shorter in GNB-positive cases (P = 0.045). Mortality was significantly higher amongst cases with purulent/turbid CSF at admission (P = 0.03), and in those with CSF protein of >150mg/dl (P = 0.02) and glucose <1mg/dl (P = 0.047). The present aetiological preponderance of GPC and Strept. pneumoniae in our study population, the high case-fatality, and the emerging resistance profile suggest the need for exploring additional control options including vaccination. We emphasize the need for periodic auditing of local antimicrobial policies in CPM.
    [Abstract] [Full Text] [Related] [New Search]