Clinical Characteristics and Early Risk Factors for Severe Mycoplasma Pneumoniae Pneumonia in Hospitalized Children: A Retrospective Analysis of 417 Cases.
Lactate dehydrogenase above 286.5 U/L strongly predicted severe Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia in children
Clinical Characteristics and Early Risk Factors for Severe Mycoplasma Pneumoniae Pneumonia in Hospitalized Children: A Retrospective Analysis of 417 Cases.
Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia (mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia) represents a common form of community-acquired pneumonia in children, and a proportion of cases progress to severe Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia (severe Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia), which may result in serious complications and life-threatening outcomes.
This retrospective analysis included 417 hospitalized children diagnosed with mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia, comprising 210 children with severe Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia and 207 children with general Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia (general Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia), admitted to The Seventh Medical Centre, Chinese PLA General Hospital, from October 2023 to February 2025.
Children with severe Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia had longer hospitalization and higher frequencies of extrapulmonary complications.
Their C-reactive protein (c-reactive protein), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), lactate dehydrogenase (lactate dehydrogenase), and D-dimer (d-dimer) levels were markedly higher.
Imaging findings more often demonstrated lobar pneumonia, atelectasis, and pleural effusion.
Multivariate logistic regression analysis identified c-reactive protein, AST, lactate dehydrogenase, and d-dimer as independent risk factors for severe Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia.
The clinical and laboratory profiles of children with severe Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia differed significantly from those with general Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia.
c-reactive protein, AST, lactate dehydrogenase, and d-dimer function as important indicators for early identification and assessment of disease severity, supporting clinical decision making.
Early monitoring of these parameters enables timely recognition of high-risk patients and may improve clinical management and prognosis.