OBJECTIVETo study the association between wheezing and Mycoplasma pneumoniae (MP) infection in infants and young children.

METHODSA total of 228 hospitalized infants and young children who were diagnosed with lower respiratory tract infection were enrolled and classified into initial wheezing group (n=65), recurrent wheezing group (n=83), and non-wheezing group (n=80). Fasting serum was collected on the day or the second day of admission. ELISA was used to measure MP-IgM, chemiluminescence was used to measure serum total immunoglobulin E (TIgE), and EUROLine was used to measure the common serum allergen specific immunoglobulin E (sIgE). The data on the manifestations of atopic constitution and the family history of allergic diseases were collected.

RESULTSThe initial wheezing group and the recurrent wheezing group showed significantly higher positive MP infection rate and serum TIgE level than the non-wheezing group (P<0.05). The recurrent wheezing group showed a significantly higher positive rate of sIgE than the initial wheezing group and the non-wheezing group (P<0.05), and in these patients, the manifestations of atopic constitution and the family history of allergic diseases were closed associated with the pathogenesis of wheezing.

CONCLUSIONSMP infection is closely associated with wheezing in infants and young children. MP is one of the most common pathogens for wheezing in infants and young children, and the allergen sIgE, atopic constitution, and a family history of allergic diseases are important risk factors for recurrent wheezing.