New method to diagnose sepsis is faster, cheaper
A new method could cut hours off the time it takes to diagnose blood infections while also eliminating the need for complicated manual processing and expensive equipment, according to a report to be published in mBio, the online open-access journal of the American Society for Microbiology, on November 19. The method combines a selective lysis step in which blood cells in the sample are destroyed, a centrifugation step to collect any bacteria or fungi in the sample, and a fluorescence step that analyzes the particular fingerprint of any pathogens present in the sample. Tests show the method correctly identifies the species of bacteria or fungi in 96.5 % of positive blood culture samples, crucial information for doctors to provide the appropriate drugs for their patients.