Mycoplasma Pneumoniae in the ICU

Principal Investigator: Joel Baseman, PhD
Lead Institution: University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio
Participating sites: University of Southern California, Massachusetts General Hospital and Yale

Mycoplasma pneumoniae is common in trauma patients with suspected ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) and contributes to pulmonary dysfunction. This was a multicenter prospective observational enrolled trauma patients with suspected VAP. The study had two specific aims: 1) determine the incidence of M. pneumoniae in mechanically ventilated intensive care unit (ICU) patients. The second aim was: 2) determine the impact of M. pneumoniae infection on ICU patient outcomes. Lavage fluid and serum samples were tested for M. pneumoniae. The study found that M. pneumoniae was present in a substantial number of study participants with suspected VAP. Participants who tested positive experienced a significantly longer ventilator course and worse oxygenation than those testing negative.