Physical, economic and familial conditions of infants with pneumonia

Physical, economic and familial conditions of infants with pneumonia Ahmadi F (Ph.D), Ramezani M (MSc.), Kermanshahi S (Ph.Ds).

Pneumonia is the most common fatal disease in infancy. Each year, more than 2 million children under 5 years of age die from it and %70-75 of these deaths occurs in infants

This descriptive analytical study was carried out to assess physical, economic and familial conditions of infants with pneumonia at Children Medical Center in Tehran. 66 infants between 1-12 months and their mothers were selected by convenience sampling method. Data collection tools included a demographic questionnaire and an observational checklist for recording clinical signs.

The mean age of infants was 5.6 months. Most of them (%60.6) was the first child of their parents and %54.5 was female. Most of the mothers (%90.9) were households and most of their fathers had nongovernmental jobs (%54.5) and smokers (%63.6). The most significant clinical signs included: tachypnea (%100), indrawn chest (%100), fever >38oC (%100), cough (%83.3), anorexia (%51.5) and dyspnea (%40.9). %43.9, %47, and %69.7 of the samples had PH <7.35, PO2 between 60-80 mmHg and PaCO2 <35 mmHg respectively.

According to the above clinical signs, it seems that rapid diagnosis and intervention as well as providing necessary information to families regarding the signs of pneumonia are crucial in the survival of infants. Key words: Conditions, Infant, Pneumonia.