Acridine orange fluorescent microscopy is more sensitive than India ink light microscopy in the rapid detection of cryptococcosis among CrAg positive HIV patients

摘要

BackgroundIndia ink microscopy on cerebrospinal fluid is still utilized in resource limited settings for the diagnosis of cryptococcal meningitis despite its poor sensitivity. We hypothesized that staining fungal nucleic acids with fluorescent dyes instead of the capsule with India ink might improve sensitivity for the diagnosis of cryptococcal meningitis.