Mycoplasma pneumoniae infection and asthma in children

A clinical association between exacerbation of asthma symptoms and Mycoplasma pneumoniae (M. pneumoniae) infection has long been suspected. We studied 80 children aged 5–15 years; 50 with asthma (Group 1) and 30 without an acute exacerbation of asthma (Group 2) for detection of M. pneumoniae by serology and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) on nasopharyngeal aspirates. Our study confirms that lower respiratory tract infections with M. pneumoniae are frequently associated with exacerbations of asthma in children.