Metagenomic sequencing of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid in pediatric pneumonia: A single-center study in Gansu province.
Pneumonia is one of the important causes of death in children. Conventional detection methods such as bacterial culture and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) are very limited for the detection of pathogens. Metagenomic next generation sequencing (mNGS) has shown strong coverage in nucleic acid detection, but its research in lower respiratory tract samples of children with pneumonia is still quite limited, especially in northwest China.
To characterize the pathogenic microbial spectrum in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) of pediatric pneumonia patients in Gansu Province, China, using mNGS, and to demonstrate the advantages of mNGS in pediatric pneumonia diagnostics.
A total of 128 pediatric pneumonia patients admitted to Gansu Provincial Maternal and Child Health Hospital (Gansu Central Hospital) between March 1, 2023 and February 5, 2025 were enrolled. BALF data, including bacterial culture, Polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and mNGS results, were collected from each patient for comprehensive analysis.
A total of 128 patients were enrolled in this retrospective study. Out of all patients, 68(53 %) were male and the median age was 3 years. A total of 31 patients had underlying diseases. mNGS demonstrated a significantly higher pathogen detection rate compared to conventional testing. Through mNGS analysis, viruses were identified as the predominant pathogenic microorganisms in children with pneumonia, and the most common infection pattern was a combination of viral and bacterial infections. Additionally, mNGS detected three types of difficult-to-culture bacteria, namely Tropheryma whipplei, Legionella pneumophila, and Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex, in the BALF from pediatric pneumonia patients in this study.
mNGS has shown obvious advantages in the detection of pathogenic microorganisms in children with pneumonia. Its universality helps to identify the pathogen as soon as possible and make up for the shortcomings of conventional testing, which is particularly important for the accurate treatment of patients with unclear infection or no obvious curative effect.
To characterize the pathogenic microbial spectrum in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) of pediatric pneumonia patients in Gansu Province, China, using mNGS, and to demonstrate the advantages of mNGS in pediatric pneumonia diagnostics.
A total of 128 pediatric pneumonia patients admitted to Gansu Provincial Maternal and Child Health Hospital (Gansu Central Hospital) between March 1, 2023 and February 5, 2025 were enrolled. BALF data, including bacterial culture, Polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and mNGS results, were collected from each patient for comprehensive analysis.
A total of 128 patients were enrolled in this retrospective study. Out of all patients, 68(53 %) were male and the median age was 3 years. A total of 31 patients had underlying diseases. mNGS demonstrated a significantly higher pathogen detection rate compared to conventional testing. Through mNGS analysis, viruses were identified as the predominant pathogenic microorganisms in children with pneumonia, and the most common infection pattern was a combination of viral and bacterial infections. Additionally, mNGS detected three types of difficult-to-culture bacteria, namely Tropheryma whipplei, Legionella pneumophila, and Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex, in the BALF from pediatric pneumonia patients in this study.
mNGS has shown obvious advantages in the detection of pathogenic microorganisms in children with pneumonia. Its universality helps to identify the pathogen as soon as possible and make up for the shortcomings of conventional testing, which is particularly important for the accurate treatment of patients with unclear infection or no obvious curative effect.