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Bacterial Pathogens Associated with Community-acquired Pneumonia in Children Aged Below Five Years

Anusmita Das1, Saurav J Patgiri, Lahari Saikia

  • 1Departments of Microbiology, and #Pediatrics, and *Multidisciplinary Research Unit (ICMR), Assam Medical College, Dibrugarh, Assam, India. Correspondence to: Dr Lahari Saikia, Professor and Head, Department of Microbiology, Assam Medical College and Hospital, Dibrugarh 786 002, Assam, India. lahari.saikia@gmail.com.

Indian Pediatrics
|April 1, 2016
PubMed

Insights

Community-acquired pneumonia in children under 5 is often caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae and Haemophilus influenzae. These common bacterial pathogens were identified using PCR and culture methods in respiratory samples.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric infectious diseases
  • Microbiology
  • Respiratory medicine

Background:

  • Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is a significant cause of childhood morbidity and mortality worldwide.
  • Identifying the causative pathogens is crucial for effective treatment and prevention strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To determine the spectrum of bacterial pathogens responsible for CAP in children under 5 years of age.
  • To compare the diagnostic performance of PCR and culture for detecting bacterial pathogens in pediatric CAP.

Main Methods:

  • Children under 5 diagnosed with pneumonia based on WHO criteria and exhibiting lung infiltrates on chest X-ray were enrolled.
  • Respiratory samples were analyzed by culture and PCR, and blood samples were cultured.
  • 180 samples were processed for pathogen detection.

Main Results:

  • Bacterial pathogens were detected in 64.4% of the samples.
  • Streptococcus pneumoniae and Haemophilus influenzae were the most frequently identified pathogens.
  • PCR and culture showed identical performance for typical bacterial pathogens; PCR uniquely identified atypical pathogens.

Conclusions:

  • Streptococcus pneumoniae and Haemophilus influenzae are the most common bacterial pathogens identified in respiratory secretions of children with CAP.
  • PCR offers an advantage in detecting atypical pathogens compared to culture alone.
Abstract

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