Clinical diagnostic value of throat swabs in pediatric acute lower respiratory tract infections using targeted next-generation sequencing.

ABSTRACT:

Background

To evaluate the clinical utility of targeted next-generation sequencing (tNGS) for pathogen detection of pediatric acute lower respiratory tract infections (ALRTIs), with a particular focus on the use of throat swab samples.

Methods

In this diagnostic accuracy study involving 132 children, throat swabs and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) samples were collected and analyzed by tNGS, and the results were compared with those obtained from conventional diagnostic methods. The impact of prior antibiotic use on the detection rate of tNGS was evaluated, the consistency between throat swabs and BALF was assessed, and the economic cost and invasiveness of the sampling methods were examined.

Results

This study enrolled 132 children, of whom 79 (60%) were boys and

SUBMITTER: Lian D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11927259 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature