Throat carriage of pneumococci in healthy school children in the Union Territory of Pondicherry.

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVES: Colonisation of Streptococcus pneumoniae in the throat is common among children the world over. Little is known about the relationship of nasopharyngeal carriage and invasive disease or the way it spreads within the households and close confines. There is a paucity of data on the colonization of Strep. pneumoniae in the throat of healthy children in India. To determine the prevalence of pneumococcal carriage in school children of urban and rural Pondicherry, a study was undertaken. METHODS: Throat swabs of healthy school-going children between 5-10 yr of age were examined for pneumococcal carriage, by standard bacteriological techniques. RESULTS: A prevalence rate of 24.3 per cent was noted. There was no difference in the carriage rate among the rural children when compared to urban children. No age, sex or geographical predilection of pneumococcal carriage was noted. A statistically significant seasonal variation, however, was seen. Carriage rate increased during the colder months and was found to be the highest in the months of March and November. INTERPRETATION & CONCLUSIONS: Strep. pneumoniae circulates in the community among healthy children. Carriage rate is influenced by seasonal variation.

Evaluation of an ELISA for the diagnosis of brucellosis.

Brucela serology using ELISA and standard agglutination test was performed on 23 patients with prolonged fever where the test was requested, on 26 randomly chosen patients with prolonged fever where it was not requested and on 17 controls. ELISA was positive in 39.1, 26.9 and 0 per cent respectively in these groups. Brucellosis may often be unsuspected because of its varied clinical manifestations and may be a more important cause of fever than previously considered. Our data reaffirm that ELISA is superior to the standard agglutination test for the diagnosis of brucellosis.