Anaerobes in the nasopharynx during acute otitis media episodes in infancy

The present study, as a part of our longitudinal study on the development o f the nasopharyngeal microflora, investigates the nasopharyngeal carriage o f anaerobes during 75 episodes of acute otitis media (AOM) experienced by 3 4 infants during their first 2 years of life. Special emphasis was put on a dequate methods of detecting anaerobic bacteria from carefully collected na sopharyngeal aspirates. During the follow-up period, two-thirds of the infa nts carried anaerobes in the nasopharynx at least once. Anaerobic species w ere recovered from 47% of the nasopharyngeal aspirates. Environmental/ecolo gical changes in the nasopharynx during infection favour the growth of anae robes. Their significance in the pathogenesis of AOM, if any, warrants furt her study. (C) 1999 Academic Press.