Serotype distribution and antimicrobial susceptibilities of nasopharyngeal isolates of Streptococcus pneumoniae from children hospitalized for acute respiratory illnesses in Hong Kong.

Five hundred nineteen Streptococcus pneumoniae isolates from nasopharyngeal aspirates of 3,157 children (age, < 16 years) participating in a respiratory surveillance study in Hong Kong in 2005 and 2006 indicated that 64.9% and 37.2% of the isolates were not susceptible to penicillin and cefotaxime, respectively. The rate of potential coverage by the seven-valent conjugate vaccine was 72.3%, and the rate increased to 74.6% for serogroup-specific types.