International Journal of Medical and Health Research

Authors
Brij Bhushan Tyagi, Bidhu Kalyan Mohanti, Nandani Hazarika, Vinod Raina

Abstract

Background & objectives: Children illness require more frequent hospital care and younger children (<15 yr of age) are more vulnerable to mortality. This study was, therefore, undertaken to evaluate the morbidity pattern in hospitalized under fifteen children (0-14 yr of age) with all disease in a tertiary care hospital in Gurgaon, India.

Methods: This was a retrospective (record based) observational study carried out from January 2014 to December 2014. Hospitalized children were enrolled for the study and evaluated for morbid events leading to hospitalization.

Results: A total of 19,609 new patients were seen in the FMRI within the period under review. Out of these, 3572 (18.2%) children were admitted (aged 0-14 years). Boys constituted 60.7% (n=2167) boys and 39.3% (n=1404) girls with boys to girls preponderance ratio of 1.54:1. Out of the total; 2736 (76.6%) children who came from 22Indian states, boys were 1642 (60.0 %) and girls were 1094 (40.0%) with a sex ratio of 666 girls to 1,000 to boys. Of the remaining 836 (23.4%) children, who were foreign nationals coming from 43 different countries, boys were 526 (62.9%) and girls were 310 (37.1%) with a sex ratio of 589 girls to 1,000 males. A statistically significant association was found between boys and girls among the Indian, other countries and total children. The major causes of admission such as problem in liveborn infants according to place of birth/birth related issues, childhood malignancy and blood disorders, aplastic anaemia, congenital malformations of heart, cerebral palsy, short gestation and low birth weight, chronic disease of tonsils and adenoids, convulsions, gastroenteritis and colotis occur more frequently during the wet season than during the dry season.Besides common peadiatrics diseases,congenital malformations of heart, childhood malignancy and blood disorders and aplastic anaemia are the common causes of morbities among the boys and girls of Indian population and foreign nationals. Conclusion: Research on morbidity is rather scanty. Yet it is very important and useful indicator of the health status of the people. The concept morbidity has more than one meaning. It is complex, multi- dimensional and difficult to define and measure because it has strong cultural character, which permits it's meaning to change over time and space.This study was a hospital based study and hence, does not represent the true rate of events for morbidity children in the general population. The ideal study should be a community-based cohort study or a birth cohort study.