Real-time polymerase chain reaction assay for detection of Streptococcus pneumoniae in sputum samples from patients with community-acquired pneumonia.

摘要

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: A quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method targeting the pneumolysin gene of Streptococcus pneumoniae in sputum specimens from patients with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) was evaluated for the identification of pneumococci. METHODS: The applicability of the assay to clinical samples was evaluated by studying 140 sputum specimens from patients with CAP. Of the specimens, 96 (68.6%) were found to be positive by real-time PCR. The results were compared to culture findings. RESULTS: The sensitivity and specificity of the real-time PCR assay developed in this study as compared to those of the culture method were 97.2% and 60.9%, respectively. CONCLUSION: Real-time PCR assay was found to be a rapid and sensitive method for the detection of pneumococci.