39th Annual Meeting of the European Society of Paediatric Infectious Diseases (ESPID), Zürich, İsviçre, 24 - 29 Mayıs 2021
Background: Microbiota composition might play a role on pathophysiology and course of sepsis and
understanding the dynamics is of clinical interest. There is a limited information about the microbiota
composition in children with sepsis. In this study, we plan to evaluate intestinal and nasopharyngeal
microbiota composition of children with sepsis.
Methods: In this prospective, multi-center study, 14 children diagnosed with sepsis (excluding
meningococcemia) and 10 age-matched healthy controls were included. Nasopharyngeal and fecal
samples have been obtained at the admission to intensive care unit and Day 10. Microbial composition
was characterized by 16S rRNA gene sequencing.
Results: At the time of admission, intestinal and nasopharyngeal microbiota composition in patients with
sepsis was found to be significantly different from healthy children. While there is an increase in
Escherichia-Shigella, Enterecoccus, Anaerococcus, Coprococcus, Peptonihilus, Staphylococcus,
Acinetobacter, Acidibacter, Stenetrophomonas at the genus level in sepsis cases, Faecalibaceburia,
Faecalibacterium, Bifidobaceterium, Roseburia and Blautia were decreased. It was observed that
alterations of microbiota composition became more pronounced in the follow-up of patients with sepsis. It
was also observed that the nasopharyngeal microbiota composition at the time of admission and followup in patients with sepsis was significantly different from that of healthy children.
Conclusions: In patients with sepsis, we observed that the intestinal and nasopharyngeal microbiota
composition was deteriorated in the early period. The infection itself or the other interventions care
caused changes on the microbiota composition during the follow-up period. Further studies to evaluate
the reason for the change in microbiome composition in patients with sepsis, its role in pathophysiology,
the effects of medications and nutrition during follow-up, needed. The evaluation of microbiome
composition, may be guiding for potential new microbiome-targeted therapies.