Comparison of PCR and Culture for Detection of Legionella pneumophila in Bronchoalveolar Fluid Samples

摘要

Atypical pneumonia due to Legionella pneumophila is termed Legionnaires' disease. Clinical manifestations are often undistinguishable from other causes of pneumonia. Laboratory test such as culture, serological test and molecular detection facilitateddiagnosis. The aim of the present study was use of polymerase chain reaction with primers that amplify a 654bp pair segment of the coding region of the 16S rRNA gene of L. pneumophila in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) specimens and evaluated results with Culture. A total of fifty archived specimens from patients were evaluated. 8% cases are positive for the PCR. 4% of specimens were culture positive for legionella. 4% positive cases in PCR method had a negative result in culture. After sequencing,specificity and sensitivity for PCR in this study was 100%. Detection of legionella DNA in samples is valuable method for rapid diagnosis. Legionella, PCR, culture, Bronchoalveolar lavage.