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Rapid identification of pathogens in normally sterile body fluid (NSBF) is essential for appropriate patient management, specifically antimicrobial therapy. Limited sensitivity and increased time to detection of traditional culture prompted us to evaluate additional testing to contribute to the diagnosis of infection. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the GenMark Dx ePlex Blood Culture Identification (BCID) Panels on positive body fluids inoculated into blood culture bottles for the detection of microorganisms. A total of 88 positive body fluids from blood culture bottles were analyzed using a Gram-Positive, Gram-Negative, and/or Fungal pathogen BCID Panel based on the Gram stain result. Each result was compared to routine culture performed from the positive bottle. When using culture as a reference standard, we found the ePlex multiplex panel performed with a positive percent agreement of 96.5% and a negative percent agreement of 99.8%. The use of multiplex PCR may be a useful supplement to routine culture for NSBF in blood culture bottles.
Cox et al. (Tue,) studied this question.