[Diagnostic assessment of head nodding in hypoxemia in children with pneumonia]
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Published on: August 19, 2020
Miguel Angel Martínez-Medina1, Gerardo Alvarez-Hernández, Ana B Contreras-Mendoza
1Servicio de neonatología, Hospital Infantil del Estado de Sonora, Hermosillo, Sonora, México. tmx6622173381@prodigy.net.mx
Objective:
To assess the clinical usefulness of the head nodding sign (HN) in children with pneumonia.
Material And Methods:
Cross-sectional study that included 62 children aged 2-59 months. Hypoxemia was defined as arterial oxygen saturation <94% measured by pulse oximetry. HN was examined with regard to three levels of hypoxemia (<94%,
Results:
The overall prevalence of hypoxemia was 56.5 %. HN was observed in 64.5% (40) of the patients, 48.4% (30) of those had pneumonia and 73.1% were hypoxemic. HN showed a sensitivity of 73.2% and a specificity of 52.4%. Accuracy of HN was better when a cut off level <94% was used. HN in infants was a better index for hypoxemia than for older children.
Conclusions:
HN was a good predictor of hypoxemia in children with pneumonia. It seems that HN is an easily recognizable sign, and it could be easily taught to parents and health workers.
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