[Immunoglobulin levels, number of eosinophils in the peripheral blood and bronchial hypersensitivity in children with Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia].

We studied the immunoglobulin levels and the number of eosinophils in the peripheral blood during the course of Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia in children. Nineteen children with Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia, including eight asthmatic children, were the study subjects. In eight of them, bronchial hypersensitivity was also measured by the Astograph method in both the convalescent phase and the healing (non-symptomatic) phase. The results were as follows. 1) Total serum IgA and IgM increased in the convalescent phase. 2) The levels of total serum IgE were higher in the acute phase and then decreased gradually. 3) The number of eosinophils in the peripheral blood increased over the acute-to-convalescent phase. 4) Bronchial hypersensitivity increased after Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia, and two asthmatic children who exhibited bronchial hypersensitivity had asthmatic attacks. 5) Bronchial hypersensitivity persisted for over one month in two non-asthmatic children.