2007 Volume 56 Issue 11 Pages 1378-1383
Background: Chlamydia pneumoniae is a frequent causative agent of acute respiratory disease and has been recently reported as a possible cause of asthma. We investigated the prevalence of C. pneumoniae infections in childhood patients with acute exacerbations of asthma. Method: One hundred twenty-six childhood patients with acute exacerbations of asthma, 77 with acute bronchitis and 22 Respiratory syncytial virus infections were studied. Serum samples were obtained and tested for C. pneumoniae-specific IgM antibody by Enzyme-Linked ImmunoSorbent Assay (ELISA). Results: C. pneumoniae IgM-positive results were observed in 48.4% (Index value≧1.60) and 23% (Index value≧1.10) of patients with acute exacerbations of asthma. The prevalence of C. pneumoniae-specific IgM was significantly higher in asthma cases than in other subjects (p<0.05). Conclusion: Our data suggest that C. pneumoniae infection may trigger acute exacerbations of childhood asthma.
