Background: The health burden and mortality caused by infectious diseases of children remain high word wide. Mortality and morbidity data are essential to identify the public health importance of different diseases and allocate resources appropriately. Objective: This study was undertaken to describe the main causes of hospitalization and death among children in Basra. Methods: A cross –sectional retrospective design was used to determine the main causes of hospitalization and death (a part from malignant diseases) among children in Basra. Medical records for patients admitted to the pediatric department in Basra General Hospital throughout 2013 were collected and analyzed for demographics, diagnosis, and outcome. Results: Around 53.3% of the patients were under 13 months. More than half of the studied population was males (60%), with a male: female ratio was 1.5: 1. The most common cause of hospital admission was Gastroenteritis (48.9%), followed by Respiratory diseases (19.7%) and Urinary Tract Infection (15.1%). The overall mortality rate was 1.4%, where 60.6 % of them are females and the complications of urinary tract infection were the most common cause. Conclusion: Infectious diseases were the main cause of hospitalization among Basra children and might lead to death. A substantial proportion of this morbidity and mortality was probably attributable to preventable causes. Prospective surveillance using microbiological data is needed to delineate the organism-specific burdens.