Bacterial epidemiology, aspects of bacterial superinfection during acute bronchitis in adults without previous respiratory tract disease.

The diagnostic of lower respiratory tract infections is still as difficult as in 1991, year of the previous consensus conference. Viral etiology remai ns dominant in acute bronchitis, especially rhinovirus. Among bacteria, onl y the implication of Mycoplasma pneumoniae and Chlamydia pneumoniae has bee n demonstrated in this disease, with incidence varying according to geograp hical localization, age of patients, and epidemics. Rare observations of pn eumonia following viral infection may account for a possible bacterial supe rinfection. The scarcity of documentation may be explained by methodologica l problems or just because superinfection is so rare. (C) 2001 Editions sci entifiques et medicales Elsevier SAS.