Nasopharyngeal Microbiome Differences Between Children with Hypertrophic Adenoids and Healthy Controls

Adenoids play a pivotal role in immune system maturation during early childhood; however, pathological adenoid hypertrophy is associated with significant morbidity. Although infectious and immunological factors have been implicated, the role of the nasopharyngeal microbiome in adenoid hypertrophy remains incompletely understood.

In this cross-sectional study, the nasopharyngeal microbiome of 26 children diagnosed with symptomatic hypertrophic adenoids was compared with that of 30 age-matched healthy controls with non-hypertrophic adenoids. Microbial profiling was performed using 16S rRNA (ribosomal ribonucleic acid)gene sequencing. Alpha and beta diversity, core microbiome, network and differential abundance analyses were performed.

Alpha diversity showed significant group differences (Fisher's alpha p = 0.048), while beta diversity was not significant. Both groups had a common core microbiome dominated by Moraxella, Haemophilus, Staphylococcus, Streptococcus, Corynebacterium and Dolosigranulum, while Fusobacterium was identified exclusively in the study group. Dolosigranulum, Corynebacterium, Finegoldia and Micrococcus were characteristic in the control group, while Campylobacter, Paludibacteraceae, Fusobacterium, Escherichia-Shigella, Cutibacterium and Nocardia were typical in the study group.

When compared with healthy controls, children with symptomatic hypertrophic adenoids exhibit a distinct nasopharyngeal microbiome characterized by altered microbial community structure and shifts in specific bacterial taxa. These findings support a potential role of the microbiome in the pathogenesis of adenoid hypertrophy.