Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/54155
Title: Identification of the presence of mycoplasma pneumonia IgM antibodies in patients with asthma
Authors: Sammut, Denise
Keywords: Mycoplasma pneumoniae
Asthma
Pneumonia
Immunoglobulins
Patients
Issue Date: 2006
Citation: Sammut, D. (2006). Identification of the presence of mycoplasma pneumonia IgM antibodies in patients with asthma. (Bachelor's dissertation).
Abstract: Introduction: Studies that have been carried out link Mycoplasma infection with acute exacerbations of bronchial asthma. In this serological based case-control study, acute infection with Mycoplasma pneumoniae will be determined in 158 patients for acute exacerbation of bronchial asthma, and compared with the corresponding number in a control group. This will determine whether there is a significant association between asthmatics and non-asthmatics and Mycoplasma infection, and which age group is particularly prone to infection. The results can be used to determine whether or not antibiotic therapy should be considered for treatment of infection, given the data obtained is significant. Objectives: Unless infection with Mycoplasma pneumoniae is treated in patients with asthma, asthmatic attacks may be more severe and pronounced and therapy is ineffective in the controlling of asthmatic attack. Clarithromycin, a macrolide with known activity against Mycoplasma, having anti-inflammatory effects, has been reported, as improving on the pulmonary function and airway inflammation of asthmatic patients. So the aims were to determine whether M pneumoniae infection is present in the airways of patients with asthmatic attacks and whether this was significant when compared with a control group of patients without asthma and to determine whether both age and gender influenced the presence of M pneumoniae infection Methodology: The population of 318 samples was divided into two groups, one of cases (with asthma attacks) and one of controls (without asthma attacks) and these were lll subsequently divided according to gender and age. Serological analysis was carried out on the serum sample using ELISA test kits for M pneumoniae IgM antibodies. Results: A sample size of 335 was tested, (above the stipulated sample study size), and 47 yielded a positive result. This represented 14.03% of the whole study population which were positive for M pneumoniae infection as compared to the remaining 85.97% which were negative for infection. In the 'Asthma' category, this represented 15.56% of positive results from the total asthma samples collected, whilst conversely for the controls this was 12.26% of the positive results. Both gender and age variables were not found to influence the results and no statistical significant difference was observed between the different groups. Conclusion: The values obtained for assessment of the presence of M pneumoniae infection in the Asthma and Control group were not significant for the Maltese population. At first glance, in comparison with the Control group, the Case group appeared to have a higher rate of acute infection with Mycoplasma pneumoniae and results for the seroprevalence of M pneumoniae IgM showed that it increases more sharply in early childhood, but then it levels off above the young adult age with a tendency to be higher in males than in females for the Asthma Case group. However following statistical analysis it was shown that disregard of these differences between groups, they failed to reach statistical significance.
Description: B.SC.(HONS)MED.LAB.SCI.
URI: https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/54155
Appears in Collections:Dissertations - FacHSc - 2006
Dissertations - FacHScABS - 2006

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