Haemophilus influenzae type b and Streptococcus pneumoniae as causes of pneumonia among children in Beijing, China

To determine if Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) and Streptococcus pneum oniae could be identified more often from the nasopharynx of patients-with pneumonia than from control patients, we obtained nasopharyngeal swab speci mens from 96 patients with chest x-ray-confirmed pneumonia and 214 age-matc hed control patients with diarrhea or dermatitis from the outpatient depart ment at Beijing Children's Hospital. Pneumonia patients were more likely to be colonized with Hib and S. pneumoniae than control patients, even after the data were adjusted for possible confounding factors such as day-care at tendance, the presence of other children in the household, and recent antib iotic use. In China, where blood cultures from pneumonia patients are rarel y positive, the results of these nasopharyngeal cultures provide supporting evidence for the role of Hib and S. pneumoniae as causes of childhood pneu monia.