Disease Spectrum and Outcome of Patients in PICU of Federal Govt. Polyclinic Hospital (FGPC) Islamabad

Abstract

Objective: To summarize the spectrum of disease and outcome in children admitted to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit of FGPCH. Methodology: It is a retrospective descriptive study conducted at Pediatric ward and Intensive care unit of Pediatric department of Federal Govt. Polyclinic Hospital, Islamabad from June’2018 to June’2020. The outcome variables are classified as discharge from PICU, death, shift to the ward after stabilization, and referral to other hospitals due to the unavailability of further specialized services. Results: A total of 424 pediatric patients were included in this study. The overall mean age was 19.6±29.2 months and there were 239 (56.4%) males and 185 (43.6%) females. The most common diagnosis was pneumonia 37.3% (158/424), followed by sepsis and meningitis 14.6% each (62/424 each), and acute gastroenteritis 11.3% (48/424). There were 116 out of 424 (27.4%) who required ventilatory support in the PICU, while the remaining 308 (72.6%) did not require ventilatory support. In terms of outcomes, there were 106 (25.0%) pediatric patients who expired, 277 (65.3%) were shifted to the ward from PICU, 29 (6.8%) were discharged and 12 (2.8%) were referred to a specialized facility. The mean duration of stay was 3.1±2.7 days. Conclusion: The most susceptible age group was under five years with the highest mortality rate and the most common cause of death is pneumonia preceded by other infections which can be controlled with better preventive measures.