Detection of <i<Streptococcus pneumoniae</i<, <i<Neisseria meningitidis</i< and <i<Haemophilus influenzae</i< in Culture Negative Cerebrospinal Fluid Samples from Meningitis Patients Using a Multiplex Polymerase Chain Reaction in Nepal

The rapid identification of bacteria causing meningitis is crucial as delays in the treatment increase mortality rate. Though considered as the gold standard for the laboratory diagnosis of bacterial meningitis, culture might give false negative results in a case of patients under antibiotics prior to lumbar puncture. This study aimed to detect <i<Streptococcus pneumoniae</i<, <i<Neisseria meningitidis</i< and <i<Haemophilus influenzae</i< by a multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in culture-negative cerebrospinal fluid samples collected from clinically suspected meningitis cases attending different hospitals in Kathmandu, Nepal from January 2017 to December 2019. <i<S. pneumoniae</i<, <i<N. meningitidis</i< and <i<H. influenzae</i< were detected in 8.59% (33/384) of the specimens by PCR and 7.55% (29/384) of the specimens by culture. Correlation between culture and PCR of the same sample was good (Spearman’s rho correlation coefficient = 0.932). However, the difference in positivity between culture and PCR was statistically not significant (<i<p</i< value < 0.05). In four specimens, culture could not detect any of the targeted bacteria whereas PCR could detect presence of <i<H. influenzae</i<. PCR increases the diagnostic yield for bacterial meningitis. PCR may be considered as an adjunctive test for establishing the cause of infection in culture negative clinically suspected meningitis cases..

Media Type:

Electronic Article

Year of Publication:

2021

Publication:

2021

Contained In:

To Main Record - volume:13

Contained In:

Infectious Disease Reports - 13(2021), 1, Seite 173-180

Language:

English

Contributors:

Supriya Sharma [Author]
Jyoti Acharya [Author]
Dominique A. Caugant [Author]
Megha Raj Banjara [Author]
Prakash Ghimire [Author]
Anjana Singh [Author]

Links:

doi.org [kostenfrei]
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www.mdpi.com [kostenfrei]
Journal toc [kostenfrei]

Keywords:

Bacterial meningitis
Culture
Nepal
Other systems of medicine
Polymerase chain reaction

doi:

10.3390/idr13010019

funding:

Supporting institution / Project title:

PPN (Catalogue-ID):

DOAJ055596045