Clinical and epidemiological characteristics of infectious cellulitis in pediatric patients cared for at the District Hospital of Hernandarias, Paraguay
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22137402Keywords:
cellulitis, child, soft tissue infections, Staphylococcus aureus, hospitalization, ParaguayAbstract
Introduction: Cellulitis is one of the most frequent bacterial skin infections in childhood and a common reason for hospitalization, but its characteristics in district hospitals in Paraguay have scarcely been described. The aim was to describe the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of cellulitis in children cared for at the District Hospital of Hernandarias, Paraguay, between August and December 2023. Materials and methods: Observational, descriptive and retrospective study through review of medical records of children aged 0 to 15 years hospitalized for cellulitis in the pediatrics service during the period. Clinical and epidemiological variables were described using frequencies, without hypothesis testing. Results: Of 543 pediatric visits during the period, 24 were infectious cellulitis (4.4%) and 21 with available medical records were analysed. Twelve (57%) were boys; mean age was 4 years and 15 (71%) were 5 years or younger. The most frequent locations were the lower limbs and the buttocks. Mean length of stay was 4 days (1 to 13). The most used antimicrobials were oral clindamycin and intravenous cefotaxime, almost always combined. All recovered completely, without complications or deaths. Conclusions: In this short series from a district hospital cellulitis affected mainly young children, predominated in the lower limbs and resolved with empirical antibiotic therapy. The descriptive findings do not allow estimation of population incidence or assessment of care performance, and support incorporating time to evolution and microbiological study into clinical records.References
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Copyright (c) 2024 Isabelly Cristina Freyn Souza, Kevin Cesar Rodrigues da Silva, Rossana Cañete Lentini (Autor/a)
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