Determinants of Complicated Pneumonia in Hospitalized Pediatric Patients

Pediatric complicated pneumonia (PCOMP) is the leading cause of mortality in children under the age of five. The study was conducted to determine the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of children with PCOMP. A retrospective study was carried out among all pediatric patients who were hospitalized due to complicated pneumonia in Abuzar Hospital (Ahvaz, Iran) during two years. The patients were evaluated in terms of epidemiological and clinical characteristics. A total of 65 hospitalized children and infants were identified. More than half of the patients were females (n=36; 55.3%). Their mean age was 4.21±3.80 years (range six months-15 years), and 64.1% of them (n=42) were under the age of five. There were 12 (19.4%) patients with failure to thrive (FTT). In addition, 58.5% of patients (n=38) had no history of hospitalization, and 66.2% of them (n=43) did not have any underlying disease. The mean length of hospital stay (LOS) was 12.46±6.85 (range 4-45) days. Admission was more common in winter (40%) and autumn (33.8%). Moreover, there were no significant associations between the types of complications and patients’ gender, age, FTT, and LOS. Further studies are warranted to identify factors contributing to disease severity and develop appropriate strategies for the prevention and treatment of PCOMP among Iranian children.