Morbidity pattern and outcome among under-fives at the children’s emergency room of Federal Medical Center Umuahia

Background: The patterns and outcome of under-five morbidity in health care facilities are invaluable tools that reflect the disease burden and health care needs of the children in the community. Efforts are being made over the past few years to improve child care services in our centre. A preliminary report therefore will assist in goal-targeted intervention strategies and serve as a baseline for subsequent reviews. Aim: To evaluate the morbidity pattern and outcome of under-fives at the Children’s Emergency Room of the Federal Medical Centre (FMC) Umuahia. Subjects and methods: A retrospective review of post-neonatal children aged 1 to 59 months seen over a period of five years. Information such as age, gender, month of admission, diagnosis and outcome were analyzed. Results: Of the 5,884 under-fives admitted over the study period, 56% were males with a male to female ratio of 1.2:1. The month with highest admissions was January. The leading causes of morbidity were malaria, diarrheal diseases and respiratory tract infections accounting for 79.9%. Sepsis was the most common morbidity noted among infants (p< 0.001). Mortality rate was 4%. Death rate among infants was significantly higher than in those beyond infancy, p < 0.001. Conclusion: Preventable infections are the leading causes of post-neonatal under-five morbidity in Federal Medical Centre Umuahia