Bacterial meningitis other diagnostic studies

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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Aysha Anwar, M.B.B.S [2]

Overview

Other diagnostic tests

Other diagnostic tests which may be used to diagnose bacterial meningitis may include:

Rapid tests

Two rapid detection tests which may be used to diagnose bacterial meningitis may include:
Latex agglutination test
Immunochromatographic tests

It is 100 percent sensitive and specific for diagnosing streptococcus pneumoniae infection.^[1]

Nucleic acid amplification tests(NAT)

NAT such as PCR may be used to diagnose specific pathogen responsible for meningitis.
The sensitivity and specificity of PCR for pneumococcal meningitis is 92 percent and 100 percent respectively.
False positive tests may be reported with NAT.

References

↑ Saha SK, Darmstadt GL, Yamanaka N, Billal DS, Nasreen T, Islam M; et al. (2005). "Rapid diagnosis of pneumococcal meningitis: implications for treatment and measuring disease burden". Pediatr Infect Dis J. 24 (12): 1093–8. PMID 16371872.

Template:WikiDoc Sources

[pmid16371872-1] Saha SK, Darmstadt GL, Yamanaka N, Billal DS, Nasreen T, Islam M; et al. (2005). "Rapid diagnosis of pneumococcal meningitis: implications for treatment and measuring disease burden". Pediatr Infect Dis J. 24 (12): 1093–8. PMID 16371872.

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