Co-infection of COVID-19 patients with atypical bacteria: A study based in Jordan
Ahmad R Alsayed1, Luai Hasoun2, Heba A Khader3
1Department of Clinical Pharmacy and Therapeutics, Faculty of Pharmacy, Applied Science Private University, Amman 11931-166, Jordan. a_alsayed@asu.edu.jo, a.alsayed.phd@gmail.com.
Insights
This study found a low prevalence of Chlamydophila pneumoniae and Mycoplasma pneumoniae co-infections in COVID-19 patients in Jordan. Real-time PCR assays effectively detected these atypical bacterial co-infections in SARS-CoV-2 positive individuals.
Area of Science:
- Infectious Diseases
- Microbiology
- Respiratory Medicine
Background:
- COVID-19, caused by SARS-CoV-2, can present with various co-infections.
- Atypical bacteria like Chlamydophila pneumoniae and Mycoplasma pneumoniae are potential co-pathogens in respiratory infections.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the prevalence of Chlamydophila pneumoniae and Mycoplasma pneumoniae co-infections in COVID-19 patients in Jordan.
- To evaluate the efficacy of a TaqMan real-time PCR assay for detecting these co-infections.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of nasopharyngeal specimens from COVID-19 patients between January and May 2021.
- Targeted detection of C. pneumoniae (Pst-1 gene) and M. pneumoniae (P1 cytadhesin protein gene) using real-time PCR.
Main Results:
- A total of 175 COVID-19 patients were analyzed, with 14 (8.0%) exhibiting co-infection.
- Co-infection rates were 2.9% for C. pneumoniae and 5.1% for M. pneumoniae alongside SARS-CoV-2.
- Real-time PCR demonstrated high performance with excellent calibration curve correlation coefficients and efficient amplification.
Conclusions:
- COVID-19 patients in Jordan show a low rate of co-infection with C. pneumoniae and M. pneumoniae.
- Clinicians should consider atypical bacterial co-infections in COVID-19 patients.
- Further prospective studies are recommended to understand the full impact of these co-infections.
Objective:
The aim of this work was to know the prevalence of Chlamydophila pneumoniae and Mycoplasma pneumoniae in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients in Jordan. Also, to assess a TaqMan real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay in detecting these two bacteria.
Methods:
This is a retrospective study performed over the last five months of the 2021. All nasopharyngeal specimens from COVID-19 patients were tested for C. pneumonia, and M. pneumoniae. The C. pneumoniae Pst-1 gene and M. pneumoniae P1 cytadhesin protein gene were the targets.
Results:
In this study, 14 out of 175 individuals with confirmed severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection (8.0%) were co-infected with C. pneumoniae or M. pneumoniae. Co-infection with SARS-CoV-2 and C. pneumoniae was reported in 5 (2.9%) patients, while 9 (5.1%) patients had M. pneumoniae and SARS-CoV-2 co-infection. The mean (± std) of the correlation coefficient of the calibration curve for real-time PCR analysis was -0.993 (± 0.001) for C. pneumoniae and -0.994 (± 0.003) for M. pneumoniae. The mean amplification efficiencies of C. pneumoniae and M. Pneumoniae were 187.62% and 136.86%, respectively.
Conclusion:
In this first study based in Jordan, patients infected with COVID-19 have a low rate of atypical bacterial co-infection. However, clinicians should suspect co-infections with both common and uncommon bacteria in COVID-19 patients. Large prospective investigations are needed to give additional insight on the true prevalence of these co-infections and their impact on the clinical course of COVID-19 patients.
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