Childhood Pneumonia in Sokoto

Abstract

Summary: A retrospective study of the features of pneumonia in 415 patients, aged between 14 days and 12 years, was undertaken over a period of 12 months at Usman Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital (UDUTH), Sokoto. Of the 415 patients, 70.6 percent had pneumonia alone, while 29.4 percent had pneumonia and one or more associated conditions, with mea sles being the commonest associated condition. Infants comprised 54.7 percent of all the cases and 38.3 percent were aged between one year and five years. Seasonal variation was observed with 50.6 percent of the cases occurring during the four rainy months (June to September). The case fatality rate was 10.4 percent and the most common complication was febrile convulsion which occurred in 7.3 percent of the cases. Pleural effusion and heart failure were complications in five and two cases, respectively. The need for sustained immunization against mea sles is strongly emphasized in order to reduce the incidence of pneumonia in our community.