Peer-reviewed article
Frequency of Enteric Fever In Children Presenting With Acute Febrile Illness In Islamabad
Hafsah Nazar, Sidra Gul, Sana Zahra, Fazal Hussain Shah ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-sonnet-5-5This cross-sectional study looked at 179 children aged 1 to 12 years who came with acute fever to a paediatric department in Islamabad between October 2024 and April 2025. Blood cultures were used to test for enteric (typhoid) fever. About one in nine children (11.7%) had confirmed enteric fever. Rates did not differ by age, sex, area of residence, maternal education, weight or fever duration, but were significantly higher in children from low socioeconomic backgrounds. The authors describe enteric fever as a high-burden disease in children in Islamabad.
Key points
- 21 of 179 children with acute febrile illness (11.7%; 95% CI 7.4–17.4%) had enteric fever confirmed by blood culture.
- Children were aged 1–12 years (median 7), and fever lasted 5–14 days (median 10).
- No significant difference by age, sex, area of residence, maternal education, weight or fever duration.
- Enteric fever was significantly more frequent in the low socioeconomic status group (p = 0.015).
- The authors recommend multi-centre studies covering more areas for more comprehensive data.
Limitations
This was a single-centre cross-sectional study of children already presenting with fever at one hospital, so the frequency may not represent all children in Islamabad or Pakistan. It describes how common the disease was and cannot show causes or test any intervention.
Abstract
Objective: To determine the frequency of enteric fever in children presenting with acute febrile illness in Islamabad, Pakistan. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study, conducted in the department of Paediatrics, Islamabad Medical Complex, Islamabad, from 1st of October 2024 to 30th of April 2025. After obtaining ethical approval, this study included 179 children with acute febrile illness. After a thorough clinical evaluation, venous samples from all patients were sent for diagnosis of enteric fever via blood culture. Data were analysed using SPSS version 22. The data were stratified according to the effect modifiers. Statistical significance was set at p ≤0.05. Results: The ages ranged from 1-12 years (median = 7, IQR = 4–10), and weights ranged from 8–48 kg (median = 27, IQR = 16–39). The duration of fever varied between 5 and 14 days (median = 10, IQR = 8–12), and the recorded temperature ranged from 38.6°C to 40.0°C (median = 39.2°C, IQR = 38.8–39.5°C). Of the 179 patients, 21 (11.7%; 95% CI: 7.4–17.4%) had enteric fever confirmed by blood culture. The data were stratified according to the effect modifiers (Table I). There was no difference between subgroups of age, sex, area of residence, maternal educational status, weight, and fever duration (p = 0.903, 0.967, 0.418, 0.383, 0.359, and 0.321, respectively). Enteric fever was significantly higher in the low socioeconomic status group (p = 0.015). Conclusion: Our study suggests that enteric fever is a high-burden disease in the paediatric population in Islamabad, responsible for 11.7% (95% CI: 7.4–17.4%) of acute febrile illnesses, with a significantly high impact on those from low socioeconomic status. Studies incorporating multiple centres and areas would provide more comprehensive data. Keywords: Typhoid Fever; Paratyphoid Fever; Fever; Cross-Sectional Studies; Socioeconomic Factors.