title: Etiology of acute lower respiratory tract infections in Gambian children: II. Acute lower respiratory tract infection in children ages one to nine years presenting at the hospital.
abstract: Seventy-four children ages 1 to 9 years hospitalized because of severe pneumonia were investigated using blood cultures, lung aspirates, nasopharyngeal aspirates, serology and antigen detection procedures. A bacterial infection was identified in 57 (77%), a viral infection was seen in 25 (34%) and 18 (24%) had mixed viral-bacterial infections. The bacterial pathogens most frequently identified were Streptococcus pneumoniae and Haemophilus influenzae found in 61 and 15% of patients, respectively. The viral pathogen most frequently recovered was respiratory syncytial virus (12%). Evidence of Chlamydia pneumoniae strain TWAR and Mycoplasma pneumoniae infection was found in 12 and 4% of cases, respectively. Overall a potential pathogen was identified in 60 (81%) children, with evidence of polymicrobial infection in 30 cases (40.5%). The study provides information on the relative role of different infectious agents in the etiology of severe pneumonia in children in a developing country.
authors.affiliation: Medical Research Council Laboratories, Fajara, Banjul, The Gambia.
authors.forename: I M
authors.initials: IM
authors.lastname: Forgie
authors.forename: K P
authors.initials: KP
authors.lastname: O'Neill
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Lloyd-Evans
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Leinonen
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Campbell
authors.forename: H C
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Whittle
authors.forename: B M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Greenwood
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D001424:Bacterial Infections / Q000382:microbiology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002690:Chlamydia Infections / Q000382:microbiology; D005260:Female; D005714:Gambia; D006192:Haemophilus Infections / Q000382:microbiology; D006193:Haemophilus influenzae / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D011014:Pneumonia / Q000382:microbiology*; D011018:Pneumonia, Pneumococcal / Q000382:microbiology; D011024:Pneumonia, Viral / Q000382:microbiology*; D012136:Respiratory Syncytial Viruses / Q000302:isolation & purification; D010253:Respirovirus Infections / Q000382:microbiology