OBJECTIVETo investigate the Mycoplasma pneumoniae (MP) infection and drug resistance in children with respiratory tract infection and to provide a rational basis for the clinical diagnosis and treatment of MP infection.

METHODSThroat swabs were collected from 3529 children with respiratory tract infection, who visited the pediatric outpatient department or received treatment in the pediatric ward of our hospital from September 2010 to September 2011. The swabs were cultured to detect MP. The drug sensitivity of MP to azithromycin, roxithromycin, erythromycin, acetylspiramycin and clarithromycin was evaluated.

RESULTSOf the 3529 children with respiratory tract infection, 1026 (29.07%) were MP-positive. There were cases of MP infection in all four seasons of the year but infection rates in summer and autumn were significantly higher than in spring and winter (P < 0.05). The infection rate in females was higher than in males (30.43% vs 28.32%; P > 0.05). The infection rate was negatively correlated with age in these children, and there were significant differences in the infection rate among all age groups (P < 0.05). For macrolide antibiotics suitable for children, the cultured MP developed the highest resistance to roxithromycin, followed by erythromycin, acetylspiramycin, clarithromycin, and azithromycin, with significant differences among them (P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONSMP infection rate is very high among children with respiratory tract infection. The incidence of MP infection is relatively low among school-age children and children are more susceptible to MP infection in summer and autumn than in spring and winter. Throat swabs should be cultured and drug sensitivity tests should be performed as early as possible in children with respiratory tract infection, so that proper intervention can be undertaken in time to reduce drug-resistant strains of MP.