All issues > Volume 35(8); 1992

Original Article

J Korean Pediatr Soc. 1992;35(8):1082-1088. Published online August 15, 1992.

A Clinical Study of Mycoplasma Pneumonia in Children During Recent 5 Years

In Seung IS Park¹, Ha Baik HB Lee¹

¹Department of Pediatrics, Hanyang University, College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea

Abstract

Mycoplasma pneumoniae infections are among the most frequent respiratory diseases of school-aged children, adolescents and young adults. However in preschool children a persistent nonproductive cough, fever and interstitial or lobular infiltrates on the chest radiograph can recently be recognized as presenting features of M. pneumoniae. We studied to find out the recent trends in epidermiologic and clinical variabilities of M. pneumoniae pneumonia in chidren who were hospitalized at the Pediatric ward of hanyang University Hospital from July 1986 through June 1991. One-hundred-and twenty children with pneumonia were enrolled into a study, where the clinical and laboratory data including the measurements of cold agglutinin (>1:64) and mycoplasma antibldy (>1:80) in acute-phase serum were evaluated. The results of the study were as follows: 1) The most frequent age of the patients was 4 to 7 years old: 73 of 120 children (60.8%), 2) The male to female ratio was 1: 1.26 3) The pneumonia was developed all the year round, and more frequent in summer. 4) The spectrum of clinical findings mostly comprises nonproductive cough, fever (>38℃), dyspnea, audible crackles, chest wall retraction and erythematous skin eruption on initial examination. 5)Most serologic examinations showed elevation cold agglutinin (>1:64) as well as mycoplasma antibody (>1:80). 6)The most frequent changes of the chest radiograph were lobular and/or lobar infiltrates (81.5%). 7)Complications of the pneumonia were infrequently developed: Pleural effusion (7.5) and erythematous skin rash (1.7%). In conclusion, the results of the study suggested that pneumonia in preschool-aged children should be made differential diagnosis of mycoplasma pneumonia.

Keywords :Mycoplasma Pneumoniae, Children