PMID: 3773828Nov 3, 1986Paper

Morbidity patterns in a general paediatric unit in rural Western Australia

The Medical Journal of Australia
L HarrisR Henderson

Abstract

Admissions to the Medical Paediatric Unit at Derby Regional Hospital in 1984 were reviewed. There were 536 admissions (289 males and 247 females). The average number of inpatients per day was 11.7, average duration of stay was 8.0 days, and there was one hospital death. Aboriginal children represented 90% of admissions and 59% of these were under two years of age. Several major problems were often encountered in individual children; these included respiratory, gastrointestinal and renal disease, failure to thrive and anaemia. Plasma electrolyte levels were measured in 82 children with gastroenteritis. Of these children 45 (55%) had a serum potassium level of less than 3.0 mmol/L and eight (10%) had a serum potassium level of less than 2 mmol/L. One hundred and four children were diagnosed as having pneumonia; 74 (71%) of them responded to penicillin. In 19 (21%) of 92 children who failed to thrive, no definite medical cause was found. The remainder had a combination of diarrhoeal disease, and chest and urinary tract infections. Anaemia, renal calculi and rheumatic fever are also common medical problems in the Kimberley region.

References

Sep 2, 1972·British Medical Journal·J C Waterlow
Apr 12, 1984·The New England Journal of Medicine·J ChretienA Woolcock
May 2, 1981·The Medical Journal of Australia·R J Berry, M Gracey

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Citations

Sep 1, 1992·Australian Journal of Public Health·M Gracey
Dec 1, 1991·Australian and New Zealand Journal of Medicine·M Gracey
Sep 1, 1989·Clinical Pediatrics·W D WilcoxD S Miller
Dec 1, 1994·Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health·M Gracey, V Gee
Oct 1, 1991·Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health·M Gracey
Apr 1, 1990·Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health·M F Harris, M Kamien
Apr 20, 1992·The Medical Journal of Australia·E MunozJ D Mathews
Sep 16, 1991·The Medical Journal of Australia·M Gracey

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