Diarrhea among children admitted to a private tertiary-care Hospital, Bangkok, Thailand: A case series

Abstract

We report here a case series of pediatric diarrhea cases admitted to a private tertiary-care hospital in Bangkok, Thailand. Retrospective data were collected from computerized medical records of 2,001 children with diarrhea (80.9% Thai), ages birth to 14 years, admitted to our facility during 2000-2005. The most common symptom leading to admission was vomiting (34.6%), while the most common sign was dehydration (63.6%). The largest proportion was comprised of toddlers (45.4%), followed by infants (24.2%). Of the total 2,564 admissions, 1,874 (73.1%) stool samples were collected and examined for red blood cells (RBC) and white blood cells (WBC); 57.1% and 70.6% were negative for RBC and WBC, respectively. Of the 1,878 blood specimens collected for electrolytes, 21.6% show acidosis. Of 1,793 stool specimens collected, the majority revealed normal flora (72.9%). Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) were seen in 10.8%. Campylobacter jejuni was found in only 2.9% of specimens, while of 1,065 specimens tested for rotavirus antigen, 23.9% were positive. In addition to bacterial cultures and their anti-microbial sensitivities, factors associated with rotavirus infection, C. jejuni, and metabolic acidosis, were also explored in this study. Rotavirus infections were more likely to be associated with children older than toddlers (3-14 years old), being admitted within the first day of the symptoms,those who were more acidotic, and was more common in the first 3 months of each year. Our data were little different from community-acquired infections reported among the general population.