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Demographic Profile and Outcome of Pediatric Intensive Care Unit
Ramchandra Bastola1, Shree Krishna Shrestha1, Bhawana Sigdel1
1Department of Pediatrics, Pokhara Academy of Health Sciences (PoAHS), Pokhara, Nepal.
Insights
Pediatric intensive care (PICU) outcomes are influenced by respiratory illness and post-major surgery. Emergency ward admissions showed a higher mortality rate, highlighting the need for further analysis in Nepal.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Critical Care Medicine
- Intensive Care Medicine
- Pediatric Health Outcomes
Background:
- Pediatric intensive care units (PICUs) offer enhanced observation and treatment for critically ill children.
- Understanding patient demographics and outcomes is crucial for improving pediatric critical care.
- This study investigates the profile and outcomes of patients within a PICU setting.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe the demographic profile of patients admitted to a PICU.
- To analyze the outcomes of pediatric patients in intensive care.
- To evaluate the association between diagnostic categories, treatment, and patient outcomes.
Main Methods:
- A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted over one year in a six-bedded PICU.
- Bivariate analysis was employed to examine relationships between variables.
- Data were collected on patient demographics, admission reasons, and outcomes.
Main Results:
- Respiratory illness (43.1%) was the leading cause for PICU admission, followed by neurosurgical illness (20.8%).
- Patients admitted post-major surgery (66.7%), hematological illness (37.5%), and cardiac disorders (20%) exhibited high mortality rates.
- A significant association was found between the portal of entry (emergency ward) and increased mortality (p<0.0001).
Conclusions:
- Respiratory illness is the primary reason for PICU admission, with post-major surgery cases having the highest mortality.
- The portal of entry is statistically linked to patient characteristics and significantly impacts outcomes.
- Further research in other institutions is recommended to refine understanding of pediatric critical care in Nepal.
Background:
Pediatric intensive care provides better observation as well as an intensive treatment, which helps to cure, support, and provide better outcomes for sick children. This study aimed to describe the demographic profile and the outcome of PICU patients, and evaluate the relationship of diagnostic categories with treatment and outcome.
Methods:
This retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted in a six-bedded PICU from 1 March 2021 to 1 March 2022. Bivariate analysis was used to identify the association between dependent and independent variables.
Results:
The infants admitted below 6 months of age were 63 (22.3%) and had male predominance accounting for 64%. The main portal of entry of the admitted cases was emergency ward 214(75.6%). Most of the patients 153(54.1%) were admitted for intensive monitoring of their abnormal vitals along with critical care according to our PICU protocol. Respiratory illness 122(43.1%), neurosurgical illness 59(20.8%), and primary infectious disease 52(18.3%) were the common reason for PICU admission. Post-major surgery 2(66.7%), hematological illness 3(37.5%), and cardiac disorders 1(20%) had high mortality rates. Among the portal of admission, the majority of the children (80.0 %) who were admitted to the PICU through the emergency ward died before exiting from the PICU (p<0.0001).
Conclusions:
Respiratory illness was the most common cause of admission and post-major surgery had the highest mortality rate. Portal of entry was statistically associated with patient characteristics and had a significant relationship with the outcome. Similar studies in other health institutions are required to further analyze the demographic profile and outcome of pediatric critical care in Nepal.
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