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Cahiers d'études et de recherches francophones / Santé

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Pleuropulmonary staphylococcal infection in infants, in a hospital environment in Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso) Volume 9, issue 4, Juillet-Août 1999

Authors
Service de pédiatrie, CHU de Ouagadougou, 03 BP 7022, Ouagadougou 03, Burkina Faso.
  • Page(s) : 209-13
  • Published in: 2000

We observed 36 cases of pleuropulmonary staphylococcal infection (PPS) in infants aged 0 to 30 months, during a prospective study carried out between April 1st 1995 and March 31 1996 at the Pediatrics Department of Ouagadougou University Hospital. PPS accounted for 0.5% of all hospital admissions and 11.6% of all acute basal respiratory infections in children aged less than 30 months. Slightly more boys than girls were affected, with a sex ratio of 1.2. We identified the classic triad of symptoms: cough-fever-polypnea, associated with abdominal ballooning and a change in general condition. On X rays, the typical images showing parenchymatous bubbles were the second most frequent observation (27.8%) after parenchymatous opacities (69.5%). The most frequently used antibiotics were oxacillin (Bristopen®), gentamycin (Gentallin®) and cefuroxime-axetil (Zinnat®). The prognosis of PPS is poor, with a high mortality rate (27.8%) and a risk of pleural recurrence. Being very young, late hospitalization, malnutrition and leukopenia were identified as factors indicating a poor prognosis. Recygling of health care personnel for the management of acute respiratory infections, a decrease in malnutrition and an improvement in vaccination cover are essential if the mortality and morbidity of acute respiratory infections, and PPS in particular, are to be reduced. Cahiers Santé 1999 ; 9 : 209-13.