Evaluation of the Frequency of Prolonged Fevers and Exploration of Their Etiologies in the Internal Medicine Department of the Point “G” University Hospital in Bamako from 2009 to 2013

Abstract

Objective: The aim was to evaluate the frequency of prolonged fevers and to determine their etiologies. Methods: We carried out a cross-sectional study extending from the period of 2009 to 2013 in the Internal Medicine department of the “G” Point University Hospital in Bamako. Included were all records of hospitalized patients with a central temperature greater than 37°C in the morning and 37°C in the evening, resting for 15 minutes, fasting for more than 2 hours, and absence of antipyretic treatment. We include all the patients of the study period with fever greater than 37.5°C in the morning and 37.8°C in the evening, resting for 15 minutes, fasting for more than 2 hours, and absence of antipyretic treatment, which have more than 21 days and measured on several occasions. The data were collected on a survey sheet. Data entry and analysis was done on SPSS software. Results: We recorded 243 fever cases out of 2155 hospitalizations, a prevalence rate of 11.2%. There were 128 men and 115 women with an average age of 43 years (range, 15 to 84 years), a modal class of 37 to 47 years, and a sex ratio of 1.11. The infectious etiologies accounted for 81% followed by neoplastic causes 09.6% and inflammatory 01.2% of cases. HIV infection was found in 26.4% of patients, malaria 13.5% and urinary tract infections 10.2%). Gram negative bacilli 88% consisted mainly of Escherichia coli (56%) and Klebsiella pneumoniae (20%).