Incidence of Bronchiolitis in Breast Fed Infants Below 2

Abstract

ABSTRACT:BACKGROUND:Acute viral bronchiolitis is a common respiratory infectious disease of children.OBJECTIVE:To study the relationship between bronchiolitis and breastfeeding in children below 2 years of age.MATERIAL AND METHODS:A prospective study was carried out with100 child aged up to 24 months to evaluate theirbreastfeeding status as possible risk factors for unfavourable evolution in department of pediatricin AL-Kahdimiya Teaching Hospital during the period from first of October 2008 to the end ofMarch 2009.RESULTS:Hundred cases of bronchiolitis were included in this study. Most of them ( 78 %) were below oneyear. Male children were 70%, female children were 30%. Fifty-four of the children wereexclusively breastfeeding. Eighty of the children were admitted to the hospital because of severeattack. The median length of hospital stay was four days and of oxygen-use was three days.CONCLUSION:The duration of exclusive breastfeeding was inversely related to the length of oxygen-use and thelength of hospital stay. Shorter exclusive breastfeeding was observed in children who wereassigned to a pediatric ward or to an intensive care unit. Longer duration of breastfeeding wasassociated with better clinical outcomes.