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Bacteria in nose may give insight to duration of infants’ cold symptoms
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How long an infant experiences symptoms of their first respiratory infection may be influenced by the bacteria present in the nasal microbiota, according to research published in ERJ Open Research.
Roland P. Neumann, MD, a neonatal consultant at the University Children’s Hospital of Basel, Switzerland, told Infectious Diseases in Children that these first infections are often viral in nature.
Neumann and colleagues examined changes in the bacterial colonization in infants’ noses between the onset of their first acute respiratory tract infection in the first year of life and 3 weeks after onset.
Of the 167 infants examined, 64.7% had an identified viral illness, the most common of which was respiratory syncytial virus (17.8%). Symptoms of acute respiratory illness lasted for approximately 2 weeks on average.
Bacterial families in infants’ nasal microbiota included Moraxellaceae, Streptococcaceae, Corynebacteriaceae, Pasteurellaceae and Staphylococcaceae. Infants who had respiratory symptoms for 3 weeks or longer had fewer families of bacteria in their nose, and they had more Moraxellaceae and Streptococcaceae.
Infants’ nasal microbiota also varied based on the season of birth, the season in which they had acquired their first respiratory tract infection, child care use and breastfeeding status at the time of their first respiratory tract infection.
“Our study is one of the first to look specifically at the dynamics of infections and their symptoms,” Neumann said. “The data collected from these could be used to examine markers of inflammatory host response in order to understand the interplay between viruses, bacteria and the host better.”
Neumann added that in the future, more swabs from both symptomatic and asymptomatic children and denser sampling during infection could assist in recognizing bacteria’s role in the duration of an infant’s first cold. – by Katherine Bortz
Disclosures: Neumann reports receiving an unrestricted research grant for laboratory materials for this study from Vifor Pharma AG in Villars-sur-Glâne, Switzerland, during the conduct of the study. Please see the study for all other authors’ relevant financial disclosures.
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