32. Comparison of differences in clinical and paraclinical characteristics in children with acute diarrhea caused by viral and bacterial infections in Can Tho
Main Article Content
Abstract
A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted on 160 children with acute diarrhea admitted to the Department of Gastroenterology at Can Tho Children's Hospital from December 2024 to August 2025. The results identified viral infections as the predominant cause (46.9%), while bacterial infections accounted for 13.2%. Among viral pathogens, group A rotavirus was the most prevalent (45.6%), followed by adenovirus (13.1%). Among bacterial pathogens, Escherichia coli accounted for the highest proportion (10.6%), followed by Salmonella spp. (9.4%). Children with viral infections typically presented with more frequent vomiting and had higher CRP levels than those with bacterial infections (p < 0.05). Therefore, clinicians should be cautious when relying solely on CRP levels to decide on antibiotic use in children with acute diarrhea.
Article Details
Keywords
Virus, bacteria, differences, acute diarrhea, children
References
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2. Cohen AL, Platts-Mills JA, Nakamura T, et al. Aetiology and incidence of diarrhoea requiring hospitalisation in children under 5 years of age in 28 low-income and middle-income countries: findings from the Global Pediatric Diarrhea Surveillance network. BMJ Glob Health. 2022; 7(9): e009548. doi:10.1136/bmjgh-2022-009548.
3. World Health Organization. The treatment of diarrhoea. 2005. Accessed August 30, 2025. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9241593180.
4. Trần Quang Khải, Nguyễn Thị Thanh Loan, Trần Chí Công. Tác nhân vi sinh gây tiêu chảy cấp ở trẻ em tại Bệnh viện Đa khoa Vĩnh Long. Tạp chí Nghiên cứu Y học. 2024; 174(1): 117-125. doi:10.52852/tcncyh.v174i1.2154.
5. Lo SF. Chapter 748 Reference intervals for laboratory tests and procedures. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics 21st ed Elsevier Inc, Philadelphia, PA. Published online 2019: e13.
6. Haemoglobin concentrations for the diagnosis of anaemia and assessment of severity. Accessed August 30, 2025. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/WHO-NMH-NHD-MNM-11.1.
7. Trần Quang Khải, Ngô Chí Quang, Nguyễn Thị Phương Uyên. Căn nguyên vi sinh và kết quả điều trị trẻ mắc tiêu chảy cấp tại Bệnh viện Nhi đồng Cần Thơ. Tạp chí Nghiên cứu Y học. 2025; 191(6): 131-138. doi:10.52852/tcncyh.v191i6.3398.
8. Siziya S, Muula AS, Rudatsikira E. Correlates of diarrhoea among children below the age of 5 years in Sudan. Afr Health Sci. 2013;13(2):376-383. doi:10.4314/ahs.v13i2.26
9. Jarman AF, Long SE, Robertson SE, et al. Sex and Gender Differences in Acute Pediatric Diarrhea: A Secondary Analysis of the DHAKA Study. J Epidemiol Glob Health. 2018; 8(1-2): 42-47. doi:10.2991/j.jegh.2018.08.102.
10. Khaliq A, Nambiar-Mann S, Miller YD, Wraith D. Exploring the Relationship of Paediatric Nutritional Status with Diarrhoeal Disease in Children Below Two Years of Age. Children (Basel). 2024; 11(11): 1374. doi:10.3390/children11111374.
11. Potgieter N, Heine L, Ngandu JPK, et al. High Burden of Co-Infection with Multiple Enteric Pathogens in Children Suffering with Diarrhoea from Rural and Peri-Urban Communities in South Africa. Pathogens. 2023; 12(2): 315. doi:10.3390/pathogens12020315.
12. Harrison CJ, Hassan F, Lee B, et al. Multiplex PCR Pathogen Detection in Acute Gastroenteritis Among Hospitalized US Children Compared With Healthy Controls During 2011-2016 in the Post-Rotavirus Vaccine Era. Open Forum Infect Dis. 2021; 8(12): ofab592. doi:10.1093/ofid/ofab592.
13. Luo X, Deng J, Luo M, Yu N, Che X. Detection and Characterization of Bacterial and Viral Acute Gastroenteritis among Outpatient Children under 5 Years Old in Guangzhou, China. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2024; 110(4): 809-814. doi:10.4269/ajtmh.23-0725.
14. Liu X, Tong X, Jin L, et al. Prospective study on the overuse of blood test-guided antibiotics on patients with acute diarrhea in primary hospitals of China. Patient Prefer Adherence. 2017; 11: 537-545. doi:10.2147/PPA.S123294.
15. Zaraket R, Salami A, Bahmad M, et al. Prevalence, risk factors, and clinical characteristics of rotavirus and adenovirus among Lebanese hospitalized children with acute gastroenteritis. Heliyon. 2020; 6(6): e04248. doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2020.e04248.
16. Moracas C, Poeta M, Grieco F, et al. Bacterial-like inflammatory response in children with adenovirus leads to inappropriate antibiotic use: a multicenter cohort study. Infection. 2025; 53(3): 935-946. doi:10.1007/s15010-024-02405-8.
17. Lambrecht NJ, Bridges D, Wilson ML, et al. Associations of bacterial enteropathogens with systemic inflammation, iron deficiency, and anemia in preschool-age children in southern Ghana. PLoS One. 2022; 17(7): e0271099. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0271099.
18. Nafis S, Shaheen R, Akhtar S, Ullah H. An Association of Iron Deficiency Anemia with Acute Gastroenteritis among Children: A cross sectional study. BMC Journal of Medical Sciences. 2024; 5(2): 95-101. doi:10.70905/bmcj.05.02.0429.