Epidemiology of Pediatric Surgical Conditions Observed in a First-Level Hospital in Burundi

Abstract

Background: Little is known about the surgical conditions affecting the pediatric population in low-income countries. In this article we describe the epidemiology of pediatric surgical diseases observed in Mutoyi hospital, a first-level hospital in Burundi.Methods and Findings: We retrospectively reviewed the records of all children (0–14 years) admitted to the Surgery ward from January 2017 to December 2017. We also reviewed the records of all the patients admitted to the Neonatology ward in 2017 and among them we selected the ones in which a surgical diagnosis was present. Five hundred twenty-eight children were admitted to the surgical ward during the study period. The most common conditions requiring hospitalization were abscesses (29.09%), fractures (13.59%), osteomyelitis (9.76%), burns (5.40%) and head injuries (4.36%). The average length of stay was 16 days. Fifty-six newborns were admitted to the Neonatology ward for a surgical condition; 29% of them had an abscess.Conclusions: Conditions requiring surgical care are frequent in Burundian children and have a completely different spectrum from the western ones. This is due on one side to an under-diagnosis of certain conditions caused by the lack of diagnostic tools and on the other to the living conditions of the population. This difference should lead to intervention plans tailored on the actual necessities of the country and not on the western ones.

Management Outcome and Factors Associated with Pediatric Surgical Patient Admitted to Arbaminch General Hospital, Southern Ethiopia, 2021: Retrospective Cross-Sectional Study

“…This study found that the mean length of hospital stay was 23.11 ± 20.826 days. This finding is relatively similar to one reported in Burundi [ 23 ]. This was much greater than a study conducted in Niger which found a mean LOS of 8.6 ± 11.2 days [ 21 ] and in Northwest Nigeria which found a mean LOS of 8.64 ± 10.31 days [ 18 ].…”

Prevalence of pediatric surgical problems among east African refugees: estimates from a cross-sectional survey using random cluster sampling

“…First, the untreated burden of surgical problems among refugee children and adolescents is high. Among children in non-refugee settings, other research has suggested high burden and prevalence of surgical problems from 3.5% to 19% [ 8 , 9 , 17 – 20 ]. Our estimates of over build on this data, where in our study population, over 30% reported a history or presence of a surgical problem, and of that 30%, over half (54%) reported the problem was ongoing.…”

Pediatric Surgery and Anesthesia in Low-Middle Income Countries: Current Situation and Ethical Challenges

“…In these settings, there is little requirement for expensive tools to use in specialized surgeries; conversely, simple and effective solutions for emergency or general care are the main need. Infections requiring surgical treatment, traumas, and burns are by far the most frequent surgical conditions requiring hospitalization in LMICs, as pointed out by several authors ( 7 , 44 , 45 ). On one side this is due to an under-diagnosis of certain conditions caused by the lack of diagnostic tools, while on the other side to the living conditions of the population.…”