scholarly journals Gonorrhea and Chlamydia Specimen Positivity Rate by Polymerase Chain Reaction at a Regional Veteran Affairs Medical Center

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey M Petersen ◽  
Sahil Patel ◽  
Sharvari Dalal ◽  
Darshana Jhala
Keyword(s):  
Polymerase Chain Reaction ◽  
Quality Assurance ◽  
Medical Center ◽  
Reference Points ◽  
Statistical Analyses ◽  
Major Public Health Problem ◽  
Chain Reaction ◽  
Test Volume ◽  
Veteran Affairs ◽  
Polymerase Chain

Abstract Objective Sexually transmitted infections because of Neisseria gonorrhoeae (NG) and/or Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) remain a major public health problem. Although the literature describes the population-based epidemiology of CT/NG, it does not appear to contain reference points for the statistical analyses of specimen positivity rates by nucleic acid testing (NAT) with polymerase chain reaction (PCR) that would be collected by a laboratory following best laboratory and regulatory practice. For facilities that diagnose NG and CT by a real-time PCR assay, an understanding of the expected specimen positivity rate of gonorrhea and chlamydia would be helpful for monitoring the assay for quality assurance. Therefore, on behalf of the Michael J. Crescenz Veteran Affairs Medical Center (VAMC), we present this novel quality assurance study on its CT/NG specimen positivity rates conducted by NAT with PCR. Methods Quality assurance/improvement quarterly data from April 1, 2012 to September 30, 2019 were reviewed to obtain both the test volume of PCR for CT/NG and the number of positive test results at the VAMC to collate and perform statistical analyses. Testing had been performed using the Abbott m2000 RealTime System (Abbott Park, IL). Results A total of 22,709 PCR tests for CT/NG had been performed on the veteran population; of these, 502 tests were positive for NG and 744 were positive for CT. Quarterly percentage rates ranged from 1.67% to 5.30% for CT and from 1.00% to 3.25% for NG, with average rates of 3.35% and 2.22% for CT and NG, respectively. Conclusion The establishment of an expected rate of specimen positivity of CT/NG by NAT with PCR at the VAMC is a significant novel reference point in the quality assurance (QA) literature and provides a benchmark that aids tremendously in QA for the microbiology/molecular laboratory.

scholarly journals Etiology of Diarrhea Requiring Hospitalization in Bangladesh by Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction, 2014–2018

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mami Taniuchi ◽  
Kamrul Islam ◽  
Md Abu Sayeed ◽  
James A Platts-Mills ◽  
Md Taufiqul Islam ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Polymerase Chain Reaction ◽  
Vibrio Cholerae ◽  
Coefficient Of Variation ◽  
Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
Major Public Health Problem ◽  
Surveillance Systems ◽  
Chain Reaction ◽  
Polymerase Chain

Abstract Background Diarrhea remains a major public health problem and characterization of its etiology is needed to prioritize interventions. However, most data are from single-site studies of children. We tested samples from participants of any age from 11 geographically diverse hospitals in Bangladesh to describe pathogen-specific burdens of diarrhea. Methods We utilized 2 existing diarrhea surveillance systems: a Nationwide network at 10 sentinel hospitals and at the icddr,b hospital. We tested stools from enrolled participants and nondiarrheal controls for enteropathogens using quantitative polymerase chain reaction and calculated pathogen-specific attributable fractions (AFs) of diarrhea. Results We analyzed 5516 patients with diarrhea and 735 controls. Overall, rotavirus had the highest attributable burden of diarrhea (Nationwide AF, 17.7%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 14.3–20.9%; icddr,b AF, 39.9%; 38.0–41.8%), followed by adenovirus 40/41 (Nationwide AF, 17.9%; 95% CI: 13.9–21.9%; icddr,b AF, 16.6%; 95% CI, 14.4–19.4%) and Vibrio cholerae (Nationwide AF, 10.2%; 95% CI, 9.1–11.3%; icddr,b AF, 13.3%; 95% CI: 11.9–15.1%). Rotavirus was the leading pathogen in children <5 years and was consistent across the sites (coefficient of variation = 56.3%). Adenovirus 40/41 was the second leading pathogen in both children and adults. Vibrio cholerae was the leading pathogen in individuals >5 years old, but was more geographically variable (coefficient of variation = 71.5%). Other attributable pathogens included astrovirus, norovirus, Shigella, Salmonella, ETEC, sapovirus, and typical EPEC. Conclusions Rotavirus, adenovirus 40/41, and V. cholerae were the leading etiologies of infectious diarrhea requiring hospitalization in Bangladesh. Other pathogens were important in certain age groups or sites.

Rapid Methods for Quality Assurance of Foods: the Next Decade with Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)-Based Food Monitoring

2014 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 255-271 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. De Medici ◽  
T. Kuchta ◽  
R. Knutsson ◽  
A. Angelov ◽  
B. Auricchio ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Polymerase Chain Reaction ◽  
Quality Assurance ◽  
Chain Reaction ◽  
Rapid Methods ◽  
Food Monitoring ◽  
Polymerase Chain

High False-Negative Rate of HER2 Quantitative Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction of the Oncotype DX Test: An Independent Quality Assurance Study

2011 ◽  
Vol 29 (32) ◽  
pp. 4279-4285 ◽  
Author(s):  
David J. Dabbs ◽  
Molly E. Klein ◽  
Syed K. Mohsin ◽  
Raymond R. Tubbs ◽  
Yongli Shuai ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Polymerase Chain Reaction ◽  
Quality Assurance ◽  
Reverse Transcription ◽  
False Negative ◽  
False Negative Rate ◽  
Oncotype Dx ◽  
Rt Pcr ◽  
Chain Reaction ◽  
Negative Rate ◽  
Polymerase Chain

Purpose HER2 (ERBB2) status is an important prognostic and predictive marker in breast carcinoma. In recent years, Genomic Health (GHI), purveyors of the Oncotype DX test, has been separately reporting HER2 by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) to oncologists. Because of the lack of independent evaluation, this quality assurance study was undertaken to define the concordance rate between immunohistochemistry (IHC)/fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) and GHI RT-PCR HER2 assay. Methods All patients at three participating laboratories (Magee-Womens Hospital [Pittsburgh, PA], Cleveland Clinic [Cleveland, OH], and Riverside Methodist Hospital [Columbus, OH]) with available HER2 RT-PCR results from GHI were included in this study. All IHC-positive and equivocal patient cases were further evaluated and classified by FISH at respective laboratories. Results Of the total 843 patient cases, 784 (93%) were classified as negative, 36 (4%) as positive, and 23 (3%) as equivocal at the three institutions using IHC/FISH. Of the 784 negative patient cases, 779 (99%) were also classified as negative by GHI RT-PCR assay. However, all 23 equivocal patient cases were reported as negative by GHI. Of the 36 positive cases, only 10 (28%; 95% CI, 14% to 45%) were reported as positive, 12 (33%) as equivocal, and 14 (39%) as negative. Conclusion There was an unacceptable false-negative rate for HER2 status with GHI HER2 assay in this independent study. This could create confusion in the decision-making process for targeted treatment and potentially lead to mismanagement of patients with breast cancer if only GHI HER2 information is used.

scholarly journals Experience With Pretravel Testing for SARS-CoV-2 at an Academic Medical Center

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. 237428952110102
Author(s):  
Katherine L. Imborek ◽  
Matthew D. Krasowski ◽  
Paul Natvig ◽  
Anna E. Merrill ◽  
Daniel J. Diekema ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Polymerase Chain Reaction ◽  
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome ◽  
Reverse Transcriptase ◽  
Medical Center ◽  
Academic Medical Center ◽  
Immunoglobulin M ◽  
Chain Reaction ◽  
Academic Medical ◽  
Polymerase Chain ◽  
Positive Results

International travel has been a significant factor in the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. Many countries and airlines have implemented travel restrictions to limit the spread of the causative agent, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2. A common requirement has been a negative reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction performed by a clinical laboratory within 48 to 72 hours of departure. A more recent travel mandate for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 immunoglobulin M serology testing was instituted by the Chinese government on October 29, 2020. Pretravel testing for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 raises complications in terms of cost, turnaround time, and follow-up of positive results. In this report, we describe the experience of a multidisciplinary collaboration to develop a workflow for pretravel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction and immunoglobulin M serology testing at an academic medical center. The workflow primarily involved self-payment by patients and preferred retrieval of results by the patient through the electronic health record patient portal (Epic MyChart). A total of 556 unique patients underwent pretravel reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction testing, with 13 (2.4%) having one or more positive results, a rate similar to that for reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction testing performed for other protocol-driven asymptomatic screening (eg, inpatient admissions, preprocedural) at our medical center. For 5 of 13 reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction positive samples, the traveler had clinical history, prior reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction positive, and high cycle thresholds values on pretravel testing consistent with remote infection and minimal transmission risk. Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 immunoglobulin M was performed on only 24 patients but resulted in 2 likely false positives. Overall, our experience at an academic medical center shows the challenge with pretravel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 testing.

scholarly journals Comparative Study of Microscopy and Polymerase Chain Reaction for the Diagnosis of Suspected Visceral Leishmaniasis Patients in Nepal

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 14-17 ◽  
Author(s):  
K Pandey ◽  
AK Mallik ◽  
S Pyakurel ◽  
SB Pun ◽  
BD Pandey
Keyword(s):  
Bone Marrow ◽  
Polymerase Chain Reaction ◽  
Visceral Leishmaniasis ◽  
Leishmania Donovani ◽  
Polymerase Chain Reaction Amplification ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
Major Public Health Problem ◽  
Chain Reaction ◽  
Polymerase Chain ◽  
Endemic Areas

Background Visceral leishmaniasis is potentially fatal protozoan diseases caused by Leishmania donovani. Nepal is an endemic region in which visceral leishmaniasis causes a major public health problem in the lowland areas that border the endemic areas of Bihar state in India. Accurate diagnosis to inform treatment is a first step in achieving the goal of visceral leishmaniasis elimination from South East Asian regions by 2020. Objective The objective of the present study was to compare between the Microcopy and polymerase chain reaction for diagnosis of visceral leishmaniasis. Methods In the present study, 236 bone marrow aspirations were collected from suspected visceral leishmaniasis patients in Janakpur Zonal Hospital, Dhanusa district, Terai region of Nepal in between 2003-2007. We evaluated bone marrow samples by microscopic examination with subsequent testing of the same sample by polymerase chain reaction and sequence analysis. Results Giemsa’s solution stained bone marrow slides stored for over five years were used for polymerase chain reaction amplification. The result showed that 71% were polymerase chain reaction positive and 56% were microscopic positive. Out of 104 microscopic negative bone marrow samples, 15% of samples were positive by polymerase chain reaction. Conclusion Polymerase chain reaction could make a very good option for diagnosis by using less or non-invasive material from visceral leishmaniasis patients in endemic areas of Nepal. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/kumj.v11i1.11016 Kathmandu University Medical Journal Vol.11(1) 2013: 14-17

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document