Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
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Trans. R. Soc. Trop. Med. Hyg. · May 2013
Multicenter StudyMulticenter study of hypoxemia prevalence and quality of oxygen treatment for hospitalized Malawian children.
Although hypoxemic children have high mortality, little is known about hypoxemia prevalence and oxygen administration in African hospitals. We aimed to determine the hypoxemia prevalence and quality of oxygen treatment by local clinicians for hospitalized Malawian children. ⋯ Although hypoxemia is common, the absence of routine pulse oximetry results in most hospitalized, hypoxemic Malawian children not receiving available oxygen treatment.
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Trans. R. Soc. Trop. Med. Hyg. · May 2013
The underlying aetiologies of coma in febrile Sudanese children.
Cerebral malaria, acute bacterial meningitis and viral encephalitis are the main causes of fever and altered consciousness in the tropics. In areas where reliable laboratory testing is unavailable, over diagnosis and misdiagnosis of these conditions is likely. In malaria endemic countries non-malarial contributors to coma may be overlooked, overburdening available resources. The aim of this study is to evaluate the underlying causes of altered mental state in children presenting with fever and coma to tertiary medical facilities in Sudan. ⋯ The clinical diagnoses of cerebral malaria, acute bacterial meningitis and viral encephalitis are unreliable. Further studies to evaluate the underlying causes of coma in febrile Sudanese children are warranted.