BACKGROUND: Treatment failure in patients with pharyngotonsillitis after a traditional course of penicillin V is a common finding. Several factors have been proposed to explain the failure rate, but the presence of aetiological agents other than group A beta-haemolytic streptococci has attracted little attention. OBJECTIVES: The aim of the present study was to investigate if a nasopharyngeal sample could suggest the aetiology of a sore throat in patients with a respiratory tract infection. METHODS: The prevalence of potentially pathogenic bacteria (Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae and Moraxella catarrhalis) in nasopharyngeal samples from 618 healthy individuals was compared with that from 108 patients with a respiratory tract infection and a sore throat. RESULTS: The prevalence of H.influenzae was higher in patients with a sore throat than in healthy individuals of the same age. For the adult patients with a sore throat, the prevalence was 27.5% compared with 2.7% for the healthy carriers (P < 10(-7)). The corresponding figures for schoolchildren were 31.3% versus 6.1% (P = 0.004) and for pre-school children 37.8% versus 13.2% (P = 0.0003). CONCLUSIONS: If H.influenzae is found in a nasopharyngeal sample from a patient with a respiratory tract infection and a sore throat, it might be the aetiological agent.
BACKGROUND: Treatment failure in patients with pharyngotonsillitis after a traditional course of penicillin V is a common finding. Several factors have been proposed to explain the failure rate, but the presence of aetiological agents other than group A beta-haemolytic streptococci has attracted little attention. OBJECTIVES: The aim of the present study was to investigate if a nasopharyngeal sample could suggest the aetiology of a sore throat in patients with a respiratory tract infection. METHODS: The prevalence of potentially pathogenic bacteria (Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae and Moraxella catarrhalis) in nasopharyngeal samples from 618 healthy individuals was compared with that from 108 patients with a respiratory tract infection and a sore throat. RESULTS: The prevalence of H.influenzae was higher in patients with a sore throat than in healthy individuals of the same age. For the adult patients with a sore throat, the prevalence was 27.5% compared with 2.7% for the healthy carriers (P < 10(-7)). The corresponding figures for schoolchildren were 31.3% versus 6.1% (P = 0.004) and for pre-school children 37.8% versus 13.2% (P = 0.0003). CONCLUSIONS: If H.influenzae is found in a nasopharyngeal sample from a patient with a respiratory tract infection and a sore throat, it might be the aetiological agent.
Authors: Jolien Teepe; Berna D L Broekhuizen; Katherine Loens; Christine Lammens; Margareta Ieven; Herman Goossens; Paul Little; Christopher C Butler; Samuel Coenen; Maciek Godycki-Cwirko; Theo Verheij Journal: Ann Fam Med Date: 2016-11 Impact factor: 5.166
Authors: Fredrik Lysholm; Anna Wetterbom; Cecilia Lindau; Hamid Darban; Annelie Bjerkner; Kristina Fahlander; A Michael Lindberg; Bengt Persson; Tobias Allander; Björn Andersson Journal: PLoS One Date: 2012-02-15 Impact factor: 3.240