Table 3.
Malaria testing and treatment practices among children admitted to five Kenyan County Hospitals: March, 2014 to February, 2016
| Indicator | Overall | H1 | H3 | H7 | H8 | H13 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total malaria admissions (N) | 13014 | 2587 | 4572 | 1695 | 2563 | 1597 |
| Malaria investigations | ||||||
| Proportion with malaria test requested, n/N (%) | 11981/13014 (92.0) | 2533/2587 (97.9) | 3770/4572 (82.5) | 1596/1695 (94.2) | 2505/2563 (97.7) | 1577/1597 (98.7) |
| Malaria test results available, n/N (%) | 10388/11981 (86.7) | 2516/2533 (99.3) | 2510/3770 (66.6) | 1481/1596 (92.8) | 2327/2505 (92.9) | 1554/1577 (98.5) |
| Positive malaria test in those with results documented, n/N (%) | 8050/10388 (77.5) | 1902/2516 (75.6) | 2046/2510 (81.5) | 1162/1481 (78.5) | 1609/2327 (69.1) | 1331/1554 (85.6) |
| Positive malaria test in all children diagnosed with malaria, n/N (%) | 8050/13014 (61.9) | 1902/2587 (73.5) | 2046/4572 (44.8) | 1162/1695 (68.6) | 1609/2563 (62.8) | 1331/1597 (83.3) |
| Diagnosis of severe malaria with positive test, n/N (%) | 5243/8050 (65.1) | 1174/1902 (61.7) | 1701/2046 (83.1) | 699/1162 (60.2) | 793/1609 (49.3) | 876/1331 (65.8) |
| Antimalarial prescription | ||||||
| Proportion with positive test prescribed anti-malarial drug, n/N (%) | 6745/8050 (83.8) | 1642/1902 (86.3) | 1760/2046 (86.0) | 909/1162 (78.2) | 1347/1609 (83.7) | 1087/1331 (81.7) |
| Proportion with negative test prescribed anti-malarial drug, n/N (%) | 1613/2338 (69.0) | 479/614 (78.0) | 372/464 (80.2) | 169/319 (53.0) | 445/718 (62.0) | 148/223 (66.4) |
| Proportion of negative test treated presumptively with repeat testing, n/N (%) | 52/1613 (3.2) | 7/479 (1.5) | 0 | 1/169 (0.6) | 18/445 (4.0) | 26/148 (17.6) |
| Proportion with no malaria test treated presumptively, n/N (%) | 786/1033 (76.1) | 28/54 (51.9) | 674/802 (84.0) | 45/99 (45.5) | 35/58 (60.3) | 4/20 (20.0) |
| Antibiotic prescription | ||||||
| Proportion of all malaria admission cases prescribed antibioticsa, n/N (%) | 6966/13014 (53.5) | 1428/2587 (55.2) | 2615/4572 (57.2) | 609/1695 (35.9) | 1555/2563 (60.7) | 759/1597 (47.5) |
| Proportion with positive test prescribed antibioticsa, n/N (%) | 4041/8050 (50.2) | 1025/1902 (53.9) | 1122/2046 (54.8) | 369/1162 (31.8) | 920/1609 (57.2) | 605/1331 (45.5) |
| Proportion with negative prescribed antibioticsa, n/N (%) | 1463/2338 (62.6) | 368/614 (59.9) | 290/464 (62.5) | 172/319 (53.9) | 497/718 (69.2) | 136/223 (61.0) |
aBroad spectrum antibiotics including crystalline penicillin, gentamicin, ceftriaxone, amoxicillin or chloramphenicol was prescribed