Pediatric pneumonia – A clinico-pathological study

Context: Numerous pathogens (bacteria, viruses, or fungi) can cause childhood pneumonia. The clinical presentations of viral and bacterial pneumonia can be similar. Though viruses are a more common cause as compared to bacteria, antibiotics remain the first line of treatment for pneumonia. Aims: Thi...

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Main Authors: Pragati A. Sathe, Monalisa Dash, Pradeep Vaideeswar, Sunil Karande, Lamk Kadiyani
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications 2024-12-01
Series:Indian Journal of Pathology and Microbiology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.lww.com/10.4103/ijpm.ijpm_700_23
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author Pragati A. Sathe
Monalisa Dash
Pradeep Vaideeswar
Sunil Karande
Lamk Kadiyani
author_facet Pragati A. Sathe
Monalisa Dash
Pradeep Vaideeswar
Sunil Karande
Lamk Kadiyani
author_sort Pragati A. Sathe
collection DOAJ
description Context: Numerous pathogens (bacteria, viruses, or fungi) can cause childhood pneumonia. The clinical presentations of viral and bacterial pneumonia can be similar. Though viruses are a more common cause as compared to bacteria, antibiotics remain the first line of treatment for pneumonia. Aims: This study was planned to describe the pulmonary histopathological patterns in cases of pediatric pneumonia (age <12 years) at autopsy and aimed to identify the probable etiology and correlate with clinical presentations. Materials and Methods: This is a single-center 3-year retrospective descriptive autopsy study. Relevant clinical data was correlated with the postmortem findings. The cases were assigned to one of the following categories based on probable etiology: viral, bacterial, mixed, or others. Results: There were 89 cases with a postmortem diagnosis of pneumonia among 262 autopsied children (34%). Most patients had histological patterns that suggested viral and bacterial etiology in 46 (51.7%) and 27 (30.3%), respectively. A total of 35 out of 46 patients received antibiotics. Twelve cases had mixed viral and bacterial patterns. Antibiotics were also given in the remaining four children (4.5%) with a similar clinical presentation, where a diagnosis of tuberculosis (03 cases) and invasive aspergillosis (01) was made at autopsy. Conclusion: Neither clinical features nor investigations reliably differentiate between viral and bacterial pneumonia. Autopsy has an important role in providing insights into the pathogenesis of pneumonia and suggests inappropriate antibiotic exposure. No prior Indian studies have been performed to compare the clinical and postmortem findings of pneumonia in children.
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spelling doaj-art-c76aa612d5684812adefc5308bd530902025-01-10T10:23:11ZengWolters Kluwer Medknow PublicationsIndian Journal of Pathology and Microbiology0377-49290974-51302024-12-0167476676910.4103/ijpm.ijpm_700_23Pediatric pneumonia – A clinico-pathological studyPragati A. SatheMonalisa DashPradeep VaideeswarSunil KarandeLamk KadiyaniContext: Numerous pathogens (bacteria, viruses, or fungi) can cause childhood pneumonia. The clinical presentations of viral and bacterial pneumonia can be similar. Though viruses are a more common cause as compared to bacteria, antibiotics remain the first line of treatment for pneumonia. Aims: This study was planned to describe the pulmonary histopathological patterns in cases of pediatric pneumonia (age <12 years) at autopsy and aimed to identify the probable etiology and correlate with clinical presentations. Materials and Methods: This is a single-center 3-year retrospective descriptive autopsy study. Relevant clinical data was correlated with the postmortem findings. The cases were assigned to one of the following categories based on probable etiology: viral, bacterial, mixed, or others. Results: There were 89 cases with a postmortem diagnosis of pneumonia among 262 autopsied children (34%). Most patients had histological patterns that suggested viral and bacterial etiology in 46 (51.7%) and 27 (30.3%), respectively. A total of 35 out of 46 patients received antibiotics. Twelve cases had mixed viral and bacterial patterns. Antibiotics were also given in the remaining four children (4.5%) with a similar clinical presentation, where a diagnosis of tuberculosis (03 cases) and invasive aspergillosis (01) was made at autopsy. Conclusion: Neither clinical features nor investigations reliably differentiate between viral and bacterial pneumonia. Autopsy has an important role in providing insights into the pathogenesis of pneumonia and suggests inappropriate antibiotic exposure. No prior Indian studies have been performed to compare the clinical and postmortem findings of pneumonia in children.https://journals.lww.com/10.4103/ijpm.ijpm_700_23bacteriachildrenfungilungmycobacteriapneumoniaviruses
spellingShingle Pragati A. Sathe
Monalisa Dash
Pradeep Vaideeswar
Sunil Karande
Lamk Kadiyani
Pediatric pneumonia – A clinico-pathological study
Indian Journal of Pathology and Microbiology
bacteria
children
fungi
lung
mycobacteria
pneumonia
viruses
title Pediatric pneumonia – A clinico-pathological study
title_full Pediatric pneumonia – A clinico-pathological study
title_fullStr Pediatric pneumonia – A clinico-pathological study
title_full_unstemmed Pediatric pneumonia – A clinico-pathological study
title_short Pediatric pneumonia – A clinico-pathological study
title_sort pediatric pneumonia a clinico pathological study
topic bacteria
children
fungi
lung
mycobacteria
pneumonia
viruses
url https://journals.lww.com/10.4103/ijpm.ijpm_700_23
work_keys_str_mv AT pragatiasathe pediatricpneumoniaaclinicopathologicalstudy
AT monalisadash pediatricpneumoniaaclinicopathologicalstudy
AT pradeepvaideeswar pediatricpneumoniaaclinicopathologicalstudy
AT sunilkarande pediatricpneumoniaaclinicopathologicalstudy
AT lamkkadiyani pediatricpneumoniaaclinicopathologicalstudy