Etiology of acute fever syndrome in children of 1 month to 5 years of age hospitalized at the Emergency Department at Hernando Moncaleano Perdomo University Hospital in Neiva

Abstract

Fever in children causes many consultations with health professionals involving primarily children under 5 years of age and often with unknown etiology for practitioners and caregivers. Objective. To determine acute fever síndrome in children of 1 month to 5 years of age attended at the emergency department at Hernando Moncaleano Perdomo University Hospital in Neiva, between July 2012 and June 2013. Materials and methods. It was carried out a prospective, descriptive study at Hernando Moncaleano Perdomo University Hospital in Neiva, from July 2012 to June 2013, in children whose age ranged from 1 month to 5 years of age, admitted at the pediatric emergency unit.  These children underwent lab tests, including dengue rapid test, (lgG/lgM + NS1 Ag) and Elisa IgM PANBIO®, respiratory viral panel and rotating-test. Data were stored in Excel spreadsheet and analyzed using SPSS version 20 program. Results. From the total, 650 children were included. They were divided into two groups; one with respiratory symptoms (total 261) and the other without respiratory symptoms (total 389), distributed on a frequency basis as follows: respiratory tract infections, dengue, acute diarrheic disease, urinary tract infection, skin disease, and soft tissues, and rash diseases. Conclusions. Viral infections are the main etiology of acute fever syndrome in children under 5 years of age.