Aetiology of Fever of Unknown Origin: One-Year Experience in a Tertiary Care Hospital of Bangladesh

Authors

  • Muhammad Abdur Rahimi Assistant Professor, Nephrology, BIRDEM, Dhaka
  • AKM Shaheen Ahmed Associate Professor, Internal Medicine, BIRDEM, Dhaka
  • Md Delwar Hossain Associate Professor, Internal Medicine, BIRDEM, Dhaka
  • Md Raziur Rahman Associate Professor, Internal Medicine, BIRDEM, Dhaka
  • Swapan Kumar Ghosh EMO, BIRDEM, Dhaka
  • Surayia Nazneen EMO, BIRDEM, Dhaka
  • Tabassum Samad Junior Consultant, Nephrology, BIRDEM, Dhaka
  • Jamal Uddin Ahmed Assistant Professor, Internal Medicine, BIRDEM, Dhaka
  • Hasna Fahmima Haque Registrar, Internal Medicine, BIRDEM, Dhaka
  • Samira Rahat Afroze Registrar, Internal Medicine, BIRDEM, Dhaka
  • Farhana Afroz Registrar, Internal Medicine, BIRDEM, Dhaka
  • AKM Musa Registrar, Internal Medicine, BIRDEM, Dhaka
  • Khwaja Nazim Uddin Professor, Internal Medicine, BIRDEM, Dhaka

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3329/birdem.v6i1.28402

Keywords:

aetiology, Bangladesh, fever of unknown origin, pyrexia of unknown origin

Abstract

Background: Fever of unknown origin (FUO) is not an uncommon problem in general medical practice. Sometimes extensive investigations fail to reach an aetiological diagnosis; on the other hand, in few cases, fever resolves spontaneously. This study was aimed to evaluate the aetiology of FUO in a tertiary care setting.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was done in the Department of Internal Medicine of BIRDEM General Hospital, Dhaka, Bangladesh from July 2012 to June 2013.

Results: Among the 33 patients studied (1.23% of total admissions), 22 (66.7%) were male. Mean age of the study population was 40.2±7.9 years. Most patients (84.8%) were diabetic. Infection (20, 60.6%) was the commonest cause, followed by malignancy (9, 27.3%). Among the infective causes (20), extra-pulmonary tuberculosis (5, 25%) was the commonest, followed by liver abscess (4, 20%). Other less common causes were Kala-azar (1), malaria (2), histoplasmosis (2), melioidosis (1), cholecystitis (1), renal abscess (1), rickettsial fever (1), apical dental abscess (1) and infective endocarditis (1). Non-Hodgkins lymphoma (6), renal cell carcinoma (2) and hepatocellular carcinoma (1) constituted the malignant causes of FUO in this series. Systemic lupus erythematosus was the aetiology of FUO in 1 case. One case remained undiagnosed and 2 patients left hospital before a definite diagnosis could be made.

Conclusion: Extra-pulmonary tuberculosis and non-Hodgkins lymphoma were the two most common causes of FUO in this study. Repeated history taking, clinical examinations and careful stepwise investigations can diagnose the aetiolgy in most cases of FUO.

Birdem Med J 2016; 6(1): 7-11

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Author Biography

Muhammad Abdur Rahimi, Assistant Professor, Nephrology, BIRDEM, Dhaka



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Published

2016-06-25

How to Cite

Rahimi, M. A., Ahmed, A. S., Hossain, M. D., Rahman, M. R., Ghosh, S. K., Nazneen, S., Samad, T., Ahmed, J. U., Haque, H. F., Afroze, S. R., Afroz, F., Musa, A., & Uddin, K. N. (2016). Aetiology of Fever of Unknown Origin: One-Year Experience in a Tertiary Care Hospital of Bangladesh. BIRDEM Medical Journal, 6(1), 7–11. https://doi.org/10.3329/birdem.v6i1.28402

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Original Articles