Introduction
Age has been identified as a major factor influencing the outcomes of
COVID-19. Elderly individuals (over the age of 60) are more likely to be
admitted to the intensive care unit and have a higher mortality rate due
to their immunosenescence and the presence of multiple
comorbidities[1, 2]. To better understand the
prevalence of lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) in elderly
patients, sputum samples from inpatients aged over 60 were collected and
subjected to culturing.
Lower respiratory tract infections are common bacterial infections among
hospitalized patients, with a mortality rate of up to 3-5% in adults,
particularly the elderly[3, 4], these infections
can be further complicated by the emergence of the novel coronavirus.
Elderly patients with multiple underlying diseases and decreased immune
function are more vulnerable to the new coronavirus infection, which is
often accompanied by lower respiratory tract bacterial infection.
This study aimed to analyze the distribution of sputum bacterial culture
pathogens in hospitalized elderly LRTI patients and the effect of the
novel coronavirus on these pathogens. The results of this study will
provide valuable insight into the prevalence in elderly LRTI patients
and the impact of the novel coronavirus on these infections. This
information can be used to inform clinical diagnosis and treatment
strategies for elderly LRTI patients.
This retrospective study included 163 elderly LRTI patients admitted to
the hospital between October 2022 and January 2023, including 129 males
and 34 females aged 60-95 years old (see Table 1 for more details). All
patients underwent routine bacterial culture, isolation and
identification of pathogenic bacteria from sputum specimens, and RT-PCR
method was used to determine the coronavirus nucleic acid. This study
was approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of Fuding Hospital.