Abstract

HAD (hospital-acquired diarrhea) is seen in nearly 2-32% of children admitted to hospital which increases the increased stay, cost, increased mortality, and mortality. Each HAD episode deprives the children of nutrients necessary for growth by their loss. More risk is seen in pediatric subjects in hospitals owing to their exposure to subjects having communicable diseases, healthcare workers, and contaminated surfaces with a higher risk in low-income hospitals due to poor infection control. Aim: The present clinical study was conducted to assess the prevalence and etiology of hospital-acquired diarrhea in pediatric subjects. Methods: The present study included 120 subjects admitted to the hospital and in the age range of 1-15 years with hospital stay duration of more than 3 days and admission was for reasons other than diarrhea. In all the study subjects, stool samples were collected and assessed for the presence of fungal, parasitic, bacterial, or viral agents. Latex agglutination test was done to detect human rotavirus antigen and ELISA for Clostridium difficile. Results: In 108 subjects with hospital-acquired diarrhea, Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli was seen in the majority of subjects with 19.16% (n=23) subjects followed by rotavirus in 14.16% (n=17) subjects, C. difficile in 11.66% (n=14) subjects, E. histolytica in 10% (n=12) subjects, Pseudomonas aeruginosa in 6.66% (n=8) subjects, Shigella flexneri in 5% (n=6) study subjects, C. Albicans, Giardia lambia, Cryptosporidium parvum, Proteus mirabilis, and Salmonella enteritidis in 5 subjects each, and Klebsiella oxytoca was seen in the least (n=3) study subjects Conclusions: The present study concludes that hospital-acquired diarrhea is highly prevalent in pediatric subjects and the infectious etiology was more common in these subjects compared to the non-infectious etiology. Most commonly associated was a bacterial infection.

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