Prevalence of upper respiratory bacterial pathogens in children

ABSTRACT

To determine the spectrum of potential pathogenic bacteria in the upper respiratory tract [URT1]. The study was conducted in the Department of Microbiology, Basic Medical Sciences Institute, Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, Karachi during the period of June 2004 to June 2005. A total of 600 subjects of 5-15 years of age were included. Swabs from nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal were collected from Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, National Institute of Child Health and other ENT clinics and processed according to Standard Laboratory Methods. The most common bacterial pathogens isolated were S. pneumoniae, S. aureus, H. influenzae and M. catarrhalis. This study included 600 cases and yielded 102 [17%] different strains of bacterial pathogens. Bacterial pathogens were commonly isolated from 5-10 years age children who developed upper respiratory tract infections