Main Clinical and Laboratory Features of Children with Bacterial Meningitis: Experience from a Tertiary Paediatric Centre in Central Vietnam

Abstract

Objective

Our study aimed to summarize symptoms and laboratory findings of bacterial meningitis at a Vietnam tertiary care hospital.

Methods

We performed a retrospective study and enrolled 33 children diagnosed with bacterial meningitis admitted at the Pediatric Center, Hue Central Hospital, between January 2019 and July 2021.

Results

Only 24.2% (8 out of 33) cases can determine etiology of bacterial meningitis. Streptococcus pneumonia was the most common pathogen. The mortality in this study was 12.1%. The most commn symptoms were fever (93.9%) and vomiting (60.6%). Loss of consciousness and poor appetite were predominant among patients who died (75%); seizures and local paralysis accounted for a half. For cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), the cloudy or turbid color was the most common in bacterial meningitis (54.5%), CSF leucocytes in a half of patients were greater than 500 cells/mm³ (48.5%). CSF white blood cells count was higher among children who died.

Conclusion

Streptococcus pneumonia was the most common pathogen. Fever, vomiting, loss of consciousness, local paralysis, and increased leucocytes, neutrophils of CSF were more common in severe cases.

Keywords:

• bacterial meningitis
• S. pneumonia
• Vietnam
• cerebrospinal fluid

Ethical Consideration

The study was assessed and accepted by the Institutional Review Board of Hue Central Hospital in compliance with the Declaration of Helsinki. The personal information of patient (name, phone number, address) was not collected. Others data was anonymized and maintained with confidentiality.

Acknowledgments

We would like to acknowledge all individuals and the hospital involved in the implementation of the survey.

Disclosure

The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.

Additional information

Funding

No external funding sources were provided for this study.