Mycoplasma Infections in Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Abstract

The relationship of mycoplasma infection to acute and chronic respiratory illness was studied in 100 adults with various degrees of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) over a four-year period. Infection with Mycoplasma pneumoniae was detected serologically in six patients, and in three this was associated with serious illness of the lower respiratory tract. Antibody to M. pneumoniae was more prevalent in the sera of patients with severe COPD (28%) than in normal subjects or in those with mild COPD (5%). Mycoplasma salivarium was isolated from 46% and Mycoplasma orale 1 was isolated from 7% of 729 sputum cultures. No relation was seen between the isolation of M. salivarium or M. orale 1 and the occurrence of acute respiratory illness, nor could colonization with these mycoplasmas be related to severity of COPD. These studies suggest that patients with moderate to severe COPD may be more susceptible to infection with M. pneumoniae than normal adults or patients with mild COPD. In contrast, the other human mycoplasmas did not appear to be pathogenic for these patients.