TITLE:
Childhood Tuberculosis: A Descriptive Study in the Pediatric Ward of a University Hospital in Abidjan
AUTHORS:
G. L. S. Couitchéré, S. J. E. Enoh, G. B. Aka, L. Zaho, L. Cissé
KEYWORDS:
Tuberculosis, Child, Diagnosis
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Pediatrics,
Vol.10 No.1,
March
24,
2020
ABSTRACT: Introduction:Tuberculosis is one of the top ten causes of death in the world. Purpose:The purpose of this study was to describe the different locations of tuberculosis and the diagnostic means used in our department. Methods:This was a descriptive retrospective study of children under 15 years of age admitted in 2018 for tuberculosis. The variables under study were socio-demographic, clinical, paraclinical and evolutionary data Results:Forty-eight children were enrolled. The median age was 8.2 years (± 4.5) and the M/F ratio was 1.4. TB contamination was foundin 20.8% of cases and the index was often a family member (80%). The median diagnostic time was 49 (± 33) days. Six patients had positive HIV serology, 82% had acute malnutrition and lung examination was abnormal in the majority of cases (70.8%). Thorax-ray abnormalities were common (81%) and tuberculin skin testing was positive in 70.6% of cases. The diagnosis was confirmed in 29.2% of the children and the confirmatory examinations were direct examination (9 cases), lymph node biopsy (4cases) and rapid test (Expert MTB/RIF) (one case). In 70.8% of cases, this was a diagnostic presumption. Pulmonary tuberculosis accounted for 72.9% of which 39.6% multifocal forms and extra-thoracic form 27.1%. Thirty-nine patients had received standard TB treatment and death occurred in 22.9% of cases. Conclusion:Children are a high-risk population for TB, especially in cases of family infection. Contacts screening through a systematic approach to diagnosis will reduce deaths. Diagnostic difficulties can be partly overcome by improving the accessibility of rapid testing.