Assessment of patterns of pediatric surgical admissions and outcome at Jimma University medical center, Jimma, South west Ethiopia

Abstract

Background: Pediatric surgical diseases are variety of surgical pathologies occurring in pediatric age groups that require surgical care as the main option of management to save life and avert or decrease disability. The aim of this study was to asses pattern and outcome of pediatric surgical conditions and their outcomes at Jimma medical center, Jimma, Ethiopia. Methods: A prospective cross-sectional, hospital-based study was conducted among children diagnosed with surgical conditions and admitted to Jimma medical center pediatric wards during the study period, April to November 2021 G.C. Descriptive statistics was done by SPSS software, P value of less than 0.05 is considered statistically significant for associated factors. Then the findings are discussed, and compared with similar studies done elsewhere. Based on the results, recommendations and conclusions were made and disseminated. Result: A total of 250 children were included in this study, among which 177 (70.8%) were male and The commonest age group were infants,113 (45.2%). Regarding type of admissions, 136 (54.4%) of them were surgical emergencies, and 161(64.4%) of them were referred from a nearby health facility. The most common cause admissions were congenital surgical conditions (45%), acute abdomen (21%) and trauma (13%). The mean (SD) of duration of hospital stay was 10.5 (8.9), there was no statistically significant difference across the different diagnosis. A quarter of patients (26.2%) developed complications in the hospital, these were surgical site infection (8%), wound dehiscence (6.4%), and Pneumonia (4.4%) and in hospital mortality rate was 6%. Among the 18 deaths, most common cause of death was uncontrolled sepsis. Conclusion: The commonest causes of pediatric surgical admissions were congenital surgical conditions, acute abdomen and trauma. About a quarter of patients developed complications in the hospital, and the most common complications were surgical site infections. In hospital mortality rate of pediatric surgical admissions in JUMC was comparable to findings from other African countries. Early identification of surgical conditions in children and timely intervention saves lives. Regular audit is needed to improve the quality of care and patient outcomes