Microbial isolates from endoscopic middle meatal swab in patients with chronic rhinosinusitis in Kaduna, Nigeria

Abstract

Background: Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is a common disease in otorhinolaryngologic practice. Traditionally, the standard criterion for isolation of pathogens in CRS is the nonendoscopic maxillary sinus puncture through invasive procedures with well-documented hazards. Objectives: To evaluate the pathogens associated with CRS in patients with CRS from endoscopically guided middle meatal swab. Methodology: A prospective cross-sectional study in which endoscopically guided middle meatal swab was aseptically taken from patients with diagnostic criteria of CRS and healthy volunteers. The samples were sent to the laboratory for qualitative and semi-quantitative analysis. Data collected were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 16 (SPSS Inc., 233 South Wacker Drive, Chicago, Illinois, USA). Results: A total of 110 microbial isolates were recovered from 82 (63.08%) of the 130 patients with CRS while 46 recorded among 54 (51.92%) of the 104 healthy volunteers. There were 74 (56.92%) bacterial growth out of which 55 (74.32%) were aerobic and 19 (25.68%) anaerobic isolates among the test participants with fungal growth seen in 36 (27.7%) of them while about 18% yielded a mixed growth of aerobic, anaerobic, and/or fungal isolates. Among the control group, however, the 54 people with positive isolates had 21 fungal and 25 aerobic bacteria. Conclusion: Mixed growth of aerobes, anaerobes, and fungal isolates was observed in patients with CRS. Endoscopically guided middle meatal swab is a safe and practical means for collecting samples for microbial culture.