Brazilian journal of medical and biological research = Revista brasileira de pesquisas médicas e biológicas
-
Braz. J. Med. Biol. Res. · Jan 1992
Comparative StudyComparison of counterimmunoelectrophoresis, latex agglutination and bacterial culture for the diagnosis of bacterial meningitis using urine, serum and cerebrospinal fluid samples.
1. Urine, serum and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples from 98 children with clinical and laboratory diagnosis of bacterial meningitis were evaluated by counterimmunoelectrophoresis (CIE) and latex agglutination (LA) methods and the results compared to those obtained with bacterial cultures of the CSF samples. Antigens of Neisseria meningitidis groups A, B and C, Haemophilus influenzae type b and Streptococcus pneumoniae were determined by both immunological methods. ⋯ Sensitivity indices were 0.772 (CSF), 0.595 (urine) and 0.317 (serum) for CIE, and 0.914 (CSF), 0.930 (urine) and 0.683 (serum) for LA in relation to the 42 positive bacterial cultures. 3. The optimal diagnostic efficacy reached 52% for CIE and 72% for LA when urine was concentrated 20- to 30-fold. 4. These data show that immunological tests of urine samples were more effective than bacterial culture for diagnosing bacterial meningitis and may be indicated when negative results are obtained for CSF tested by bacterial culture and immunoassay methods.