TITLE:
Purulent Meningitis in Children in African Hospitals
AUTHORS:
Idrissa Basse, Naja Fatou Coly, Aliou Abdoulaye Ndongo, Bassirou Diedhiou, Papa Souléye Sow, Abdoul Magib Cissé, Ndéye Ramatoulaye Diagne Guéye
KEYWORDS:
Purulent Meningitis, Children, Senegal
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Pediatrics,
Vol.16 No.1,
January
9,
2026
ABSTRACT: Introduction: Purulent meningitis (PM) in children poses a public health problem, particularly in countries in the African meningitis belt. The aim of this study was to investigate the epidemiological, clinical, and evolutive aspects of pediatric bacterial meningitis in African hospitals. Methodology: This is a retrospective, descriptive, and analytical study covering a six-year period from 2017 to 2022. Results: The hospital admission rate was 1.17%. The average age was 12.4 months. Malnutrition, asthma, and sickle cell disease were the main underlying conditions. Thirty-seven children (41.1%) had received antibiotics prior to hospitalization. Fever, seizures, and signs of meningeal irritation were the main clinical manifestations. The cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) was cloudy in 52.2% of patients. The average cytorrhea was 123 elements/mm3. The glycorrhea-glycemia ratio was less than 0.40 in 36 patients. CSF culture was positive in 8.9% of cases. Pneumococcus was the most common pathogen (37.5%). Bacterial resistance to amoxicillin was the most significant. Ceftriaxone was the most commonly used drug in therapy (83.3%). Thirty-four patients (37.77%) had received corticosteroid therapy. The mortality rate was 12.22%. Epilepsy was the main sequella encountered (3.3% of cases). Factors associated with poor prognosis were low birth weight, lack of vaccination, delayed consultation, malformation of the central nervous system, glycorrhachia below 0.40, and pneumococcal or meningococcal infection. Conclusion: Purulent meningitis in children remains a serious disease despite the progress made thanks to vaccination and improved hospital care. Awareness of antibiotic abuse must be raised.