Abstract
Background and objective: Although the prevalence of macrolide-resistant (MR) Mycoplasma pneumoniae isolates in Japanese pediatric patients has increased rapidly, there have been no reports concerning MR M. pneumoniae infection in adolescents aged 16 to 19-years old. The purpose of this study was to clarify the prevalence and clinical characteristics of MR M. pneumoniae in adolescent patients with community-acquired pneumonia.
Methods: A total of 61 cases with M. pneumoniae pneumonia confirmed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and culture were analyzed. Thirty-two cases were pediatric patients less than 16 years old, 14 cases were 16 to 19-year-old adolescent patients and 15 cases were adult patients. Primers for domain V of 23S rRNA were used and DNA sequences of PCR products were compared with the sequence of an M. pneumoniae reference strain.
Results: Twenty-two of 32 pediatric patients less than 16-years old, eight of 14 adolescent patients aged 16 to 19-years old and five of 15 adult patients with M. pneumoniae pneumonia were found to be infected with MR M. pneumoniae. Among 22 pediatric MR patients, 18 had an A-to-G transition at position 2063 (A2063G) and four had an A-to-G transition at position 2064 (A2064G). Among eight adolescent MR patients, six showed an A2063G transition and two showed an A2064G transition.
Conclusions: The prevalence of MR M. pneumoniae is high among adolescent patients as well as pediatric patients less than 16-years old. To prevent outbreaks of M. pneumoniae infection, especially MR M. pneumoniae, in closed populations including among families, in schools and in university students, physicians should pay attention to MR M. pneumoniae.
- © 2012 ERS
