ASSESS THE UTILITY OF PLATELET COUNT AS A POTENTIAL PREDICTOR OF SERIOUS BACTERIAL INFECTION.

Aims and Objectives :-To assess the utility of platelet count as a potential predictor of serious bacterial infection. Material and Methods:-The study was conducted in the Postgraduate Department of Pediatrics, G.B. Pant hospital, an associated hospital of Govt. Medical College Srinagar, which is a referral tertiary care hospital for the children of Kashmir valley .The study was a prospective non-randomized study conducted from April 2011 to March 2012 . All infants of age 30-89 days admitted in hospital with rectal temperature > 38◦C/100.4◦F without an apparent focus of infection on history and clinical examination were included in the study. Results:- Total of 149 patients fulfilled the inclusion criteria .Only 39 out of 149 (26.2%) had SBI (serious bacterial infection). Mean platelet count (lakh/mm3 ? 1SD) in our study was 5.1?1.1 in SBI versus 3.9?1.6 in Non-SBI which was statistically significant in SBI, p value < 0.05. Combination of four tests TLC ≥ 15000 / mm3 ,Pyuria ,CRP≥2mg/dl and PLT ≥ 4.5 lakh /mm3 may help in early prediction of febrile young infants at risk of serious bacterial infection.Conclusion :- In our study a combined high-risk criterion of platelet count of ≥450,000 mm/3 ,TLC ≥15,000/mm3, Pyuria > 5 WBC/hpf and CRP≥ 2mg/dl resulted in misclassification of only 2(5.1%) patients out of 39 SBI, so this combination help in early prediction of patients at risk of SBI.