Pneumonia acquired by children less than five years of age in the community

Abstract

Introduction:

Pneumonia is an important cause of morbidity and mortality in the pediatric age.

Objective:

To describe the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of community pneumonia in children less than five years of age.

Methods:

A descriptive, prospective, cross-sectional study was carried out in the Pediatric Service of the ¨Piti Fajardo¨ Maternal and Child Hospital, in the municipality of Güines, Mayabeque province. The universe included 213 children admitted for pneumonia; a sample of 157 children less than five years of age was selected by criteria through an intentional non-probabilistic sampling. The variables studied were: age, sex, risk factors, clinical and radiological manifestations, complications and antimicrobial therapy.

Results:

Pneumonia predominated in children from one to 12 months of age in the 51.3 %, 61.3 % of them from the male sex. The risk factors that stood out were not exclusive breastfeeding in a 66.7% and 45.9% were passive smokers. The most frequent clinical manifestations were cough 66.3%, fever 55.1%, 77.5% presented alterations in vesicular murmur and 77.5% condensing lobar lesions in the chest X-ray. 12.7% of the patients were complicated with pleural effusion and 77.9% of the pneumonias were iterated with synthetic or semisynthetic penicillins.

Conclusions:

Pneumonia predominates in children from one to 12 months of age, male, cough is the most frequent symptom and disorders at the auscultation, with condensate lesions. Penicillin is the most widely used antibiotic in pneumonias.