Alloiococcus otitidis, exclusive pathogen of the middle ear?

Persistent bacterial bronchitis (PBB) is defined by the presence of wet cough for longer than 3 weeks, isolation of the pathogen in bronchoalveolar cultures and resolution of the cough with treatment with amoxicillin and clavulanic acid for at least two weeks. Although the number of updated cases has increased since its description in 2006, it remains an underdiagnosed disease despite the fact that early diagnosis and treatment prevents the evolution to more serious forms which can become irreversible. Multiple etiologic agents are found in the literature, the most frequent are non-typable Haemophilus influenzae, Streptococcus pneumoniae and Moraxella catarrhalis. However, there is no reported case of Alloidococcus otitidis as the causative agent of PBB. This microorganism has been isolated mainly in middle ear pathology.