Development and evaluation of a multiplex test for the detection of atypical bacterial DNA in community-acquired pneumonia during childhood

Diagnostic features of community-acquired pneumonia in children: what's new?

AIM

To critically summarise the available data on diagnosis of CAP in children, focusing on the newest findings and on the need for new studies.

METHODS

Eighty studies on the diagnosis of paediatric community-acquired pneumonia were scrutinised.

RESULTS

We found no significant associations between the signs or symptoms and aetiology of pneumonia and concluded that chest radiographs remain controversial and real-time polymerase chain reaction appears more sensitive than blood cultures.

CONCLUSION

Antibiotic overuse could make it difficult to differentiate viral and bacterial causes. Molecular methods provide promising tools for diagnosing infection by atypical bacteria, but are expensive and should be used selectively.

Real-time PCR as a diagnostic tool for bacterial diseases

In recent years, quantitative real-time PCR tests have been extensively developed in clinical microbiology laboratories for routine diagnosis of infectious diseases, particularly bacterial diseases. This molecular tool is well-suited for the rapid detection of bacteria directly in clinical specimens, allowing early, sensitive and specific laboratory confirmation of related diseases. It is particularly suitable for the diagnosis of infections caused by fastidious growth species, and the number of these pathogens has increased recently. This method also allows a rapid assessment of the presence of antibiotic resistance genes or gene mutations. Although this genetic approach is not always predictive of phenotypic resistances, in specific situations it may help to optimize the therapeutic management of patients. Finally, an approach combining the detection of pathogens, their mechanisms of antibiotic resistance, their virulence factors and bacterial load in clinical samples could lead to profound changes in the care of these infected patients.

Nucleic acid lateral flow tests for molecular diagnosis: an update

Lateral flow tests for molecular diagnosis have enormous potential in the fields of clinical practice, food safety, genotyping and environmental contamination. This paper describes the basic features of nucleic acid lateral flow (NALF) tests and some recent evolutions in this domain. The paper intentionally does not report on the accuracy of NALF tests, a largely under-investigated aspect of these tests. As for lateral flow immunoassays, NALF tests are intended to simplify detection of an analyte. Thus, designing NALF tests that are less dependent on or independent of sophisticated equipment remains a major challenge.