The occurrence of Branhamella catarrhalis and other commensal Neisseriaceae in clinical sputum specimens in Lagos, Nigeria.

Branhamella catarrhalis and other commensal Neisseria species were isolated from 200 out of 500 sputum samples from patients with lower respiratory tract (LRT) infections at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH). B. catarrhalis was isolated from 60 (12%). The isolation rates for other Neisseria species were as follows: N. mucosa from 45 (9%), N. sicca from 40 (8%), N. lactamica from 35 (7%), N. cinerea from 12 (2.4%) and N. subflava from 8 (1.6%). B. catarrhalis occurred in pure cultures in 15 (25%) of the 60 samples positive for this organism. Twenty (33%) out of the 60 N. catarrhalis isolates were beta-lactamase positive.