The Bacteriology of the Respiratory Tract in Various Pathological Conditions

Abstract

A total of 516 samples of diseases of the middle ear, nose, paranasal sinuses, and specific and non-specific pulmonary diseases were examined bacteriologically. On the basis of our examinations, we offer the following conclusions: The swab of the ear in acute inflammation of the middle ear has less diagnostic value if the secretion is not pronounced. In these cases we find the bacterial flora sensitive to penicillin. In chronic inflammation the bacterial flora is mixed and antibiotics with the largest spectrum give the best result. The bacterial flora in different pathological conditions of the tracheobronchial tree varies and only a combination of several antibiotics can be successful. The bacteriological examination of the paranasal sinuses must be either clean inflammatory secretion or washing with bouillon, because washing with physiological solution can hide the bacteriological infection with haemophilia inj'lu-enzae. Parallel bacteriological examinations of the nose and paranasal sinuses did not give the same bacteriological findings, which means that the bacteriological finding of the nose cannot be a bacteriological indication of infection of the paranasal sinuses.