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Microbial interactions during upper respiratory tract infections

Melinda M Pettigrew1, Janneane F Gent, Krystal Revai

  • 1Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8034, USA. melinda.pettigrew@yale.edu

Emerging Infectious Diseases
|October 2, 2008
PubMed

Insights

Bacterial colonization in children

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Pediatrics
  • Infectious Diseases

Background:

  • Nasopharyngeal colonization by Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, Moraxella catarrhalis, and Staphylococcus aureus is common.
  • Children are vulnerable to bacterial infections, especially following upper respiratory tract infections (URIs).

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the colonization patterns of four key nasopharyngeal bacteria in healthy children during URIs.
  • To analyze the interactions between these bacterial species during colonization.

Main Methods:

  • Prospective cohort study of 212 healthy children aged 6-36 months.
  • Year-long follow-up with analysis of 968 nasopharyngeal swabs.

Main Results:

  • Streptococcus pneumoniae colonization showed a negative association with Haemophilus influenzae colonization.
  • When Haemophilus influenzae and Moraxella catarrhalis co-colonized, the likelihood of all three species (including S. pneumoniae) increased.
  • Negative associations were observed between S. pneumoniae and S. aureus, and between H. influenzae and S. aureus.

Conclusions:

  • Polymicrobial nasopharyngeal colonization dynamics are complex and depend on the specific bacterial species and their combinations.
  • Interventions like antimicrobial therapy or vaccination may have unintended consequences on the nasopharyngeal microbiome.

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