TITLE:
Acute Bronchiolitis about 535 Cases at Zinder National Hospital, Niger
AUTHORS:
Georges Thomas Ibrahim, Doutchi Mahamadou, Hassane Maman Laoul, Hamza Mahaman Nafissa, Garba Moumouni, Samaila Aboubacar, Kamaye Moumouni
KEYWORDS:
Acute Bronchiolitis, Infant, Zinder, Niger
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Pediatrics,
Vol.15 No.1,
January
27,
2025
ABSTRACT: Introduction: Lower respiratory infections in general, and acute bronchiolitis in particular, represent a major cause of morbidity in children in Niger. The aim of this study was to investigate the epidemiological, diagnostic and therapeutic features of acute bronchiolitis in infants in the Pediatrics A department of the National Hospital in Zinder. Patients and Methods: This was a descriptive, cross-sectional study with prospective data collection conducted from April 1 to May 31, 2024. All infants aged 0 to 24 months hospitalized with acute bronchiolitis in the pediatric ward A of Zinder National Hospital were included in the study. Epidemiological, diagnostic and therapeutic aspects were the characteristics studied. Data analysis was performed using Epi info 7 software. Results: During the study period, acute bronchiolitis accounted for 51% of hospitalizations, and infants aged 3 - 11 months were the most affected (52.90%). The sex ratio was 1.6. The average age of patients was 10.40 ± 6.91 months, with extremes of 1 and 24 months. 98.50% of patients came from urban areas, and the socioeconomic level of families was average in 47.49% of cases. Mixed breastfeeding was practiced in 59.63% of cases. Average hospital admission time was 4.22 days. The main clinical signs were cough (43.18%), rhinorrhea (70.85%), ronchi (35.33%), crepitating rales (26.54%), sibilant rales (24.11%), signs of struggle (14.02%) and polypnea (70.85%). Paraclinical findings included chest distension, hyperleukocytosis and anemia, with 47.48%, 55.14% and 78.31% respectively. Therapeutically, nebulization was used in 93.08% of cases, respiratory physiotherapy (41.34%), corticosteroid therapy (34.08%), antibiotic therapy (21.50%), oxygen therapy (20.11%) and antipyretics (4.68%) were prescribed. Progression was favorable in 93.08% of patients, with a case-fatality rate of 1.12%. Conclusion: With its high frequency, acute bronchiolitis is a public health problem. Boys were the most affected by the condition, and the predominant age group was 3 to 11 months. Management was essentially based on nebulization and physiotherapy.