Recovery of anaerobic bacteria from pediatric patients. A one-year experience.

During 1975, 115 speciments from the soft tissues, body fluids, and purulent sites in 105 pediatric ward and nursery patients were submitted to the clinical laboratory for anaerobic study, and 75% of the cultures were positive. In most instance specimens were collected in anaerobic transport tubes containing peptone yeast extract and glucose. In the laboratory, samples were processed by the anaerobic holding jar method. Nineteen different anaerobic organisms were isolated; the average number of species per specimen was 1.8 Bacteroides sp were the most common isolates (45 strains). Other isolates included 44 anaerobic cocci (15 of which were Peptostreptococcus sp), 22 Propionibacterium sp, ten Fusobacterium sp, nine Clostridium sp, eight Veillonella sp, six Bifidobacterium sp, and four Eubacterium sp. The main sources of anaerobic isolates included 52 gastric aspirates, 46 soft tissue sites, 14 blood specimens, 12 CSF samples, and 12 samples from the external ear canals. Forty-one (43%) of the 86 specimens that contained anaerobic bacteria also had aerobic organisms present.