Pneumonia in HIV-infected children admitted to hospital in Cape Town, South Africa

Abstract

There is little information on the aetiology and outcome of HIV-associated pneumonia in African children and no comprehensive data from South Africa. Studies of HIV-infected adult in Africa reported that the spectrum of pulmonary disease differs from that of developed countries with tuberculosis and pyogenic pneumonia predominating and Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia (PCP) occurring uncommonly. Knowledge of the aetiology and outcome of pneumonia is important for the development of paediatric management guidelines and of policies for allocation of resources especially in South Africa, where the HIV pandemic has resulted in increasing numbers of HIV-positive children requiring admission to hospital or intensive care units for pneumonia. Furthermore in countries with limited resources, development of cost effective diagnostic procedures to investigate the aetiology of pneumonia is necessary.