Bacteriological Study of Lung Aspirate Cultures of Acute Lower Respiratory Tract Infections with Reference to Blood Cultures and Throat Swab Cultures among Children

Abstract

Acute lower respiratory tract infections (LRTs) are the leading cause of mortality in below 5 year aged children and shows higher incidence among low income group. Scope: The present study was conducted on one hundred twenty paediatric patients suffering from acute lower respiratory tract infections were evaluated. Lung aspirates, blood samples and throat swabs were investigated bacteriologically to identify the prevalent bacterial isolates and their susceptibility patterns. This study observed that acute LRTIs were predominant among males, effects especially below 5 years aged children. Material and Methods: Lung aspirates were collected under the guidance of paediatrician and processed on sheep Blood agar, Chocolate agar, Nutrient agar and MacConkey’s agar followed by incubated for 18-24hrs, simultaneously the blood samples and throat samples were inoculated in appropriate culture media and processed for pathogens. Findings: Bacteriological analysis revealed 47.5 %(57) positivity in lung aspirates, 15.8% (19) positivity in blood culture and 7.5 %(9) positivity for pathogenic organisms in throat swabs. The dominant organism remained Streptococcus pneumoniae followed by Hemophilus influenza, Klebsiella pneumonia. All the pathogens were subjected to antibiotic sensitivity testing by Modified Kirby-Bauer’s method and tested for Meropenem, Ampicillin, Cotrimoxazole, Ciprofloxacin, Cefotaxime, and Amikacin and observed maximum sensitivity to parenteral drugs such as Carbapenems, Cefotaxime and Aminoglycosides. Conclusion: Comparative study with different samples provides statistically significant values.