Frequency of hyponatremia in community acquired pneumonia

Objectives: Community acquired pneumonia (CAP) is frequent amongst pediatric population all over the world while hyponatremia is a common electrolyte abnormality in hospitalized patients that has been shown to be associated with considerable morbidity and mortality. We aimed to determine the frequency of hyponatremia in children with community acquired pneumonia (CAP). Study Design: Cross Sectional study. Setting: Pediatrics Department, Services Hospital, Lahore. Period: July 2018 to January 2019. Material & Methods: A total of 100 cases up to 2 years of age of either gender, diagnosed cases of CAP during the last 72 hours, were enrolled. Demographic profile, age and gender were recorded. Every child with CAP was evaluated for the presence of hyponatremia. Mean and standard deviation were calculated for age. Frequency and percentages were noted for categorical variable like gender and presence/absence of hyponatremia. Results: Out of 100 cases of CAP, 57 (57.0%) were male and 43(43.0%) female. There were 45 (45.0%) cases who were less than 1 year of age while 55 (55.0%) were between 1-2 years of age. Mean age was calculated as 1.55 years with standard deviation of 0.52 years. Frequency of hyponatremia in children with CAP was recorded in 24 (24.0%) whereas 76 (76.0%) had no findings of the morbidity. Conclusion: Frequency of hyponatremia was high (24.0%) among children with CAP. Every patient who present with CAP should be evaluated for hyponatremia.