Flora bacteriana orofaríngea en pacientes asmáticos de la ciudad de Maracaibo, Venezuela / Oropharyngeal bacteria in asthmatic patients in the city of Maracaibo, Venezuela

ABSTRACT

Bronchial asthma is an intercurrent disease that affects a major portion of the population. Neither its etiopathogenesis nor its complications have been fully established. The purpose of this study was to determine the composition of oropharyngeal bacterial flora in asthmatic patients and compare it with oropharyngeal bacterial flora in a group of healthy patients in order to establish its relationship with the pathogenesis of asthma and its complications. A sample consisting of 116 pharyngeal swabs was analysed from march 1995 to december 1996. 58 of the total amount of pharyngeal swabs corresponded to asthmatic patients (during asthmatic crisis), while the other 58 corresponded to healthy subjects. Common bacteriological culture techniques were carried out in order to obtain the bacteriological diagnosis. The results showed that isolation of transitory flora bacteria in asthmatic patients was 75.8, which was significantly higher (p < 0.05) than in the control group (27.5). Streptococcus pyogenes was the most frequent isolated bacteria in the group of asthmatic patients (17.2), while Escherichia coli was the most frequent bacteria in the control group. No significant difference was found regarding sex and the presence of transitory flora bacteria. It was also found that enterobacteria and non fermenting negative gram bacillus increased with age in both groups; a higher incidence was observed in the group of 40-year-old subjects. These finding confirm the existence of a relationship between the asthmatic condition and the percentage of transitory bacterial flora carriers. The explanation to this phenomenon might be the frequent use of antibiotics and the possible contamination of the micro-nebulization equipment used for the treating the asthma crisis. This data must be considered when applying empiric therapy in asthmatic patients complicated with pneumonia. The possibility that certain infectious agents, including bacteria, could play a role in asthma pathogenesis is one of the questions that should be answered in future studies on this topic.