Clinical and microbiological profile of enteric fever among pediatric patients in a tertiary care center in South India: A cross-sectional study

Introduction: Enteric fever, which is endemic in India, is a significant cause for morbidity, particularly among young children. Enteric fever is associated with high fever, abdominal pain, diarrhea, and splenomegaly. Recently, there have been increasing reports of enteric fever due to Salmonella enterica serovar Paratyphi A and multidrug resistance among Salmonella species. Objectives: The objective of this study was to know the relative occurrence of Salmonella Typhi and Salmonella Paratyphi A from blood cultures of enteric fever cases, to study the sensitivity pattern of Salmonella species isolated, to compare the clinical profiles in typhoid and paratyphoid fever, and to know their treatment outcome. Materials and Methods: It was a prospective hospital-based cross-sectional study. The demographic, clinical, and laboratory data were recorded for all cases included in the study. All clinically suspected cases of enteric fever were confirmed by blood culture and/or the Widal test. Antibiotic sensitivity was tested by the Kirby–Bauer disc diffusion method. Results were analyzed using SPSS version 21. Results: One hundred and nineteen cases were confirmed enteric fever. Their clinical profile is discussed. Out of 119 cases, 24 showed blood culture positivity. Salmonella Paratyphi A and Salmonella Typhi were isolated in the ratio of 3:1. The isolates were sensitive to ampicillin, co-trimoxazole, ceftriaxone, and azithromycin. Ceftriaxone was the most commonly used antibiotic for treatment. All patients recovered, and no mortality was encountered. Complications were seen in 33 children (27.7%), which included subclinical hepatitis, bronchitis, and pneumonia. Conclusion: Considering the blood culture results, enteric fever due to S. Paratyphi A was more common in our study. Multidrug resistance was not seen among Salmonella species. The duration of illness and complications were more with typhoid than paratyphoid cases.