“Analysis of Mortality in PICU of A Tertiary Care Teaching Hospital, Telangana– An Introspection”

Background: Paediatric critical care medicine is a challenging contemporary subspecialty. The development of paediatric intensive care has contributed to the improved survival of critically ill children. Aim: To study andanalysethe deaths occurring over a period of one year in a Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) of a tertiary care teaching hospital. Methods: A prospective observational cohort study of deaths in PICU was conducted over a period of one year. Data collected was demographic profile, co morbidities, length of stay,diagnosis,ICU therapies like use of inotropesand mechanical ventilation (MV). Results: There were a total of 990 admissions to the PICU of which 233 died with a mortality rate of 23.5%. The mean age of deaths was 2.84years with 72% of deaths occurring under five years of age (excluding neonates).16% of deaths occurred within 24 hours of admission and 10% deaths had prolonged stay (>14days).Pneumonia constituted for almost one third of deaths followed by sepsis. Mechanical ventilation rate was only 34.8%. Conclusion: By their very virtue,ICUs are resource intensive with respect to both technology and the need for skilled health care providers. A large percentage of hospital costs are attributed to the ICU. As the cost of health care increases, the need to manage the resources of the ICU as efficiently and effectively as possible increases in importance as well.