Main Clinical and Laboratory Features of Children with Bacterial Meningitis: Experience from a Tertiary Paediatric Centre in Central Vietnam

Abstract

Objective: Our study aimed to summarize symptoms and laboratory findings of bacterial meningitis at a Vietnam tertiary care hospital.

Methods: We performed a retrospective study and enrolled 33 children diagnosed with bacterial meningitis admitted at the Pediatric Center, Hue Central Hospital, between January 2019 and July 2021.

Results: Only 24.2% (8 out of 33) cases can determine etiology of bacterial meningitis. Streptococcus pneumonia was the most common pathogen. The mortality in this study was 12.1%. The most commn symptoms were fever (93.9%) and vomiting (60.6%). Loss of consciousness and poor appetite were predominant among patients who died (75%); seizures and local paralysis accounted for a half. For cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), the cloudy or turbid color was the most common in bacterial meningitis (54.5%), CSF leucocytes in a half of patients were greater than 500 cells/mm³ (48.5%). CSF white blood cells count was higher among children who died.

Conclusion: Streptococcus pneumonia was the most common pathogen. Fever, vomiting, loss of consciousness, local paralysis, and increased leucocytes, neutrophils of CSF were more common in severe cases.

Keywords: S. pneumonia; Vietnam; bacterial meningitis; cerebrospinal fluid.