Sepsis risk factors in children: a brief report

Background: Sepsis is a leading cause of death in infants and children. In this study, we determined sepsis risk factors in children admitted in Bahrami Hospital. Methods: Medical records of 94 patients with septicemia and a positive blood culture were reviewed in this study. The patients had been admitted during 2010-2011 in different wards of Bahrami Pediatric Hospital. Variables including age, gender, underlying diseases, causative agents and use of medical devices were extracted from the medical records and analyzed statistically. Results: 54.3% of the cases were male and 51% were below 1 year of age. 54.3% had underlying diseases including malignancy (18.1%) and renal disease (11.7%), which were the most common causes. Failure to thrive (FTT) was detected in 34% of the cases. 82% of the causative bacterial agents were gram positive bacteria and the most common organisms were coagulase negative staphylococci (63.8%) and staphylococcus aureus (10.6%). IV-catheters (100%), NG tubes (9.6%), urinary catheters (4.3%) had been used in the patients. The mortality rate was 6.3%. Conclusion: This study showed that septicemia was more prevalent in infants and the most common underlying diseases were malignancy and renal disease, respectively. Gram positive bacteria were the most common cause of septicemia.