Thrombocytosis as a predictor of severity of LRTI in children aged 2 months to 5 years

Background: Platelets play a major role in antimicrobial host defences, the induction of inflammation and tissue repair. The present study aimed at determining the prevalence of thrombocytosis and its significance in predicting the severity of clinical manifestations in children with LRTI aged between 2 months to 5 years. Methods: This was an observational cross-sectional study with purposive sampling technique conducted in the Department of Paediatrics and Department of Emergency Medicine in a tertiary care hospital from Western India between 2018 and 2019. The study included children aged two months to 60 months admitted with lower respiratory tract infection. The sample size was estimated to be 358 with 95% confidence. Results: Majority (62.0%) were between 2 months and 12 months. Nearly two thirds (62.6%) were males. We found that 16.2% children aged two months to 60 months had pneumonia; 55.3% had severe pneumonia; and 28.5% had very severe pneumonia. While 72.6% children between two months and 60 months had no malnutrition, we noted that 15.6% children had Grade 1, 8.4% had Grade II, 2.8% had Grade III, and 0.5% had Grade IV malnutrition. Chest indrawing, grunting, severity of pneumonia, total leucocyte count, and duration of stay were significantly (p<0.05) associated with thrombocytosis. Conclusion: The findings suggest that thrombocytosis may be a useful marker of disease severity in this population and highlight the importance of monitoring platelet count in the management of LRTI in children