Background: The etiologic diagnosis of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) remains challenging in children because blood cultures have low sensitivity. Novel approaches are needed to confirm the role of Streptococcus pneumoniae.
Methods: In this study, pneumococcal etiology was determined by serology using a subset of blood samples collected during a prospective multicentre observational study of children <15 years of age hospitalized in Belgium with radiogram-confirmed CAP. Blood samples were collected at admission and 3-4 weeks later. Pneumococcal (P)-CAP was defined in the presence of a positive blood or pleural fluid culture. Serotyping of S. pneumoniae isolates was done with the Quellung reaction. Serological diagnosis was assessed for 9 serotypes using World Health Organization-validated IgG and IgA serotype-specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs).
Results: Paired admission/convalescent sera from 163 children were evaluated by ELISA (35 with proven P-CAP and 128 with nonproven P-CAP). ELISA detected pneumococci in 82.8% of patients with proven P-CAP. The serotypes identified were the same as with the Quellung reaction in 82% and 59% of cases by IgG ELISA and IgA ELISA, respectively. Overall, ELISA identified a pneumococcal etiology in 55% of patients with nonproven P-CAP. Serotypes 1 (51.6%), 7F (19%) and 5 (15.7%) were the most frequent according to IgG ELISA.
Conclusions: In conclusion, the serological assay allows recognition of pneumococcal origin in 55% of CAP patients with negative culture. This assay should improve the diagnosis of P-CAP in children and could be a useful tool for future epidemiological studies on childhood CAP etiology.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/INF.0b013e31828c363f | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Cohort profile: the potentially preventable burden of community-acquired pneumonia in South African adults in the era of widespread PCV13 immunisation and antiretroviral therapy roll-out, before and during the COVID-19 pandemic - the multicentre, multimethod PotPrev Study.
BMJ Open
December 2024
Perinatal HIV Research Unit (PHRU), University of the Witwatersrand Johannesburg, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa.
Purpose: In the setting of an established childhood pneumococcal vaccination programme with immediate initiation and treatment of antiretroviral therapy (ART) for people living with HIV (PLWH), the risk of adult pneumococcal community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is not recently described. We aimed to investigate CAP incidence, recurrence, mortality, risk factors and microbiology before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Participants: Adults aged ≥18 years were enrolled in three South African provinces from March 2019 to October 2021, with a brief halt during the initial COVID-19 lockdown.
Simplified process for preparing native and depolymerized capsular polysaccharides of Streptococcus pneumoniae.
Carbohydr Polym
March 2025
Beijing Minhai Biotechnology Co. Ltd, Beijing 102600, China. Electronic address:
Streptococcus pneumoniae is a major pathogen of bacterial pneumonia, meningitis, sepsis, and otitis media. The pathogenicity of this bacterium is largely attributed to its polysaccharide capsule, a protective layer around bacterial cell that enables bacteria to resist against host defense. Capsular polysaccharides (CPSs) of S.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFClozapine and Pneumonia: Synthesizing the Link by Reviewing Existing Reports-A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Medicina (Kaunas)
December 2024
Department of Psychiatry, University of Melbourne, Parkville 3052, Australia.
Clozapine is a highly effective antipsychotic used for treating treatment-refractory psychotic and mood disorders. However, clozapine also has a serious risk of side effects leading to mortality, particularly its potentiated risk of leading to pneumonia. This review aims to overview the demographic and health-related risk factors leading to pneumonia to better inform risk assessment for clozapine users and to summarise current theories on the mechanisms for clozapine-associated pneumonia.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFOrally Administered Lactobacilli Strains Modulate Alveolar Macrophages and Improve Protection Against Respiratory Superinfection.
Biomolecules
December 2024
Laboratory of Immunobiotechnology, Reference Centre for Lactobacilli (CERELA-CONICET), San Miguel de Tucumán 4000, Argentina.
Orally administered immunomodulatory lactobacilli can stimulate respiratory immunity and enhance the resistance to primary infections with bacterial and viral pathogens. However, the potential beneficial effects of immunomodulatory lactobacilli against respiratory superinfection have not been evaluated. In this work, we showed that the feeding of infant mice with CRL1505 or MPL16 strains can reduce susceptibility to the secondary pneumococcal infection produced after the activation of TLR3 in the respiratory tract or after infection with RVS.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF[Urinary tract infection due to Streptococcus pneumoniae and its relationship with nephrourological malformations].
Andes Pediatr
August 2024
Unidad de Nefrología, Hospital General de Niños Pedro de Elizalde, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Article Synopsis
- Urinary tract infections (UTIs) in children are primarily caused by enterobacteria, but Streptococcus pneumoniae is a rare cause that can indicate underlying issues.
- A case study focused on a 2-year-old girl with recurrent UTIs, renal malformations, and a detected UTI caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae demonstrated the importance of thorough imaging studies for such cases.
- The findings highlight that UTIs from this atypical bacterium often correlate with serious renal-urological conditions, emphasizing the necessity for additional urinary tract evaluations in affected patients.
Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!