M. pneumoniae was cultured using the classic M. pneumoniae agar medium (M.P. agar) and the Pneumofast tray (Pneumofast ® , International Microbio, Signes, France). Specimens were processed according to the instructions of the manufacturer. The M.P. agars and Pneumofast trays were incubated anaerobically at 37°C and inspected daily for 4 weeks. The organism was identified based on typical colonial morphology (granular colonies, rarely fried-egg-like, 10-150 ∝ in diameter) on the M.P. agar medium and the change in the Pneumofast broth color from red to orange then to yellow (glucose fermentation) in the absence of turbidity of the broth. Antibiotic sensitivity profile on the Pneumofast tray was also used for identification according to the instructions of the manufacturer. Bacterial and viral cultures were performed using standard methods.