Morbidity and mortality of severe malnutrition among Sudanese children in New Haifa Hospital, Eastern Sudan

Medical files of children with severe malnutrition admitted at New Haifa hospital, Sudan during 2007-2009 were reviewed. A total of 1097 children (54.9%, 602 male) with severe malnutrition were admitted during the three year period. Oedematous severe malnutrition was found in 179 (16.3%) children. Of these 1097, 796(72.6%) patients with severe malnutrition were children <2 years old. Out of these 1097 children, 780(71.1%) and 112 (10.2%) had diarrhoea and malaria, respectively. Sixty-one (5.5%) of these children died, 237(21.6%) discharged against medical advice and 799(72.8%) were discharged. Of the 61 children who died 11(18.0%) had septicaemia following diarrhoea and respiratory tract infections. The case fatality rate was not different with sex or with presence/absence of oedema. (C) 2011 Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.