Primary peritonitis in pediatric patients seen at the Tokoin Teaching Hospital in Lome, Togo. A review of 26 cases

Twenty-six cases of primary peritonitis in pediatric patients without ascit es, nephrotic syndrome, or intercurrent disease managed between January 198 7 and December 1996 were reviewed. Mean age was 28 months, and 61% of patie nts were girls. Cultures of peritoneal fluid (and/or pseudomembrane) were p ositive in all but eight cases. In the 18 patients with positive cultures, a single organism was recovered, with the most common being Staphylococcus aureus and group A P-hemolytic streptococci. In every case, the surgical pr ocedure consisted in painstaking cleansing of the peritoneal cavity, routin e appendectomy, and drainage. Postoperative antimicrobial therapy was selec ted based on antibiotic susceptibility test results. There were four deaths (15.38%). Given the low frequency of primary peritonitis, this study provi des valuable data on the epidemiology, diagnosis, and pathogenesis of this condition.