Nasopharyngeal Carriage of <i>Haemophilus haemolyticus</i> in Otitis-Prone and Healthy Children

Abstract

Haemophilus haemolyticus is often incorrectly categorized as nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHI) upon culture. PCR analyses of 266 NTHI-like nasopharyngeal isolates from children with and without recurrent acute otitis media (rAOM) revealed that 11.7% were H. haemolyticus and 9.4% gave equivocal results. Children with rAOM were more likely to carry H. haemolyticus.