Pneumococcal nasopharyngeal carriage and patterns of penicillin resistance in young children in Fiji

Abstract

Background: Little is known about nasopharyngeal carriage and the patterns of antibiotic resistance of pneumococci in Pacific nations. We set out to document pneumococcal nasopharyngeal carriage and associated risk factors, antimicrobial resistance and serotypes in healthy children in Fiji. Methods: A cross-sectional survey of healthy children aged 3-13 months was conducted. Nasopharyngeal (NP) swabs were collected from each child and processed according to standard methods. Antimicrobial resistance was determined by disk diffusion and confirmed by E-testing. Serotyping was performed by the Quellung reaction. Results: Of 440 consecutive NP swabs taken, 195 were S. pneumoniae-positive (carria..