Five Years' Evaluation of the BD ProbeTec System for the Direct Molecular Detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Complex in Respiratory and Nonrespiratory Clinical Samples.

In this study, Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex was detected by BD ProbeTec ET system in 4716 respiratory and 167 nonrespiratory samples [mostly (98%) smear negative). Sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values were 81.8%, 98.3, 85.1 and 97.9 for respiratory and 100%, 96.2, 64.7 and 100, for nonrespiratory samples, respectively. Among 149 (3.1%) ProbeTec DTB positive and culture negative samples, 72 (65 respiratory and seven nonrespiratory) (48.3%) were recovered from the patients who were evaluated as having TB infection. The system has been found as useful in early diagnosis of tuberculosis infection in association with the clinical, radiological and histopathological findings.

[Comparison of the performances of MTD Gene-Probe® test, BACTEC 960™ system and Löwenstein-Jensen culture methods in the diagnosis of smear-negative tuberculosis cases]. / Yayma negatif tüberküloz olgularinin tanisinda MTD Gen-Probe® testi, BACTEC 960™ sistemi ve Löwenstein-Jensen kültür yöntemlerinin performansinin karsilastirilmasi

The aim of this study was to compare the results of nucleic acid amplification-based MTD (Mycobacterium tuberculosis direct test) Gene-Probe® method in samples obtained from acid-fast bacilli (ARB) smear-negative patients with suspected tuberculosis (TB), with the culture results obtained from automated BACTEC 960™ (MGIT) system and Löwenstein-Jensen (LJ) medium. In addition, the contribution of molecular methods in early diagnosis of pulmonary TB and the effect of radiological prevalence of the disease associated with or without cavity to the molecular diagnosis and/or growth time in culture media have been evaluated. A total of 107 patients (86 male, 21 female; mean age: 49.89 ± 17.1 years, age range: 18-81 years) who were clinically and radiologically suspected of having pulmonary TB and/or TB pleurisy, were included in the study. Of the samples 65 (60.7%) were sputum, 32 (29.9%) were bronchial aspiration, 5 (4.7%) were pleural fluid, and 5 (4.7%) were transthoracic fine needle aspiration biopsy materials. Patient samples were cultured in solid LJ media and liquid-based BACTEC 960 system (Becton Dickinson Co., USA) in the same working day. Meanwhile, MTD Gen-Probe test (Gen-Probe Inc., USA) was studied in two separate working days of the week as specified by the laboratory. The samples were incubated until positivity was determined in BACTEC 960 system and/or growth was detected in LJ medium. Negative cultures were incubated for 42 days and were finalized. When mycobacterial growth was determined in the culture, identification of M.tuberculosis complex (MTBC) and differentiation from nontuberculous mycobacteria were performed by conventional methods and BACTEC 460 NAP test. Forty five (42%) patients were diagnosed as pulmonary paranchimal TB (40 were active pulmonary TB, 1 was miliary TB and 4 were culture-negative pulmonary TB), while 4 (3.7%) patients diagnosed as extrapulmonary TB and 58 (57.9%) patients were diagnosed as other pulmonary diseases unrelated with TB. LJ cultures yielded positive results in 32 of 45 (71%) pulmonary TB patients, and BACTEC 960 were found positive in 84.4% (38/45) of those patients. On the other hand the positivity rate of MTD Gen-Probe test was detected as 37.4% (40/107). The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values for MTD Gen-Probe test were estimated as 89%, 100%, 100% and 93%, respectively. Those values for BACTEC 960 system were found as 82%, 98%, 97% and 88%, and for LJ culture method as 71%, 100%, 100% and 83%, respectively. Average periods to make a decision for diagnosis of TB by MTD Gen-Probe, BACTEC 960 (MGIT) and LJ culture methods were calculated as 2.36 days, 20.11 days and 32.49 days, respectively. In comparison of the methods in terms of turnaround times, MTD Gen-Probe test was found superior to LJ culture method, however the turnaround times for BACTEC 960 and LJ culture methods were similar. When the clinical data were evaluated, no effect of radiological density of lesion was identified on the diagnosis time of molecular test and time of growth in liquid based automated BACTEC system and/or LJ culture method. However, LJ culture demonstrated earlier reactivity in patients with cavitary lesions. As a result, MTD Gene-Probe test was observed as a reliable and rapid method for the early diagnosis of pulmonary TB patients, early initiation of therapy, prevention of disease progression and transmission.

[Diagnostic value of pleural fluid and serum procalcitonin levels in the diagnosis of parapneumonic pleural effusion]. / Parapnömonik plevral efüzyon tanisinda plevral sivi ve serum prokalsitonin düzeylerinin tanisal degeri.

INTRODUCTION: To determine the diagnostic value of pleural fluid procalcitonin (PF-PCT) and serum PCT (S-PCT) levels in the diagnosis of parapneumonic pleural effusion (PPPE). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sixty five inpatients with exudative pleural fluid were consecutively included in this prospective study. Biochemical (total protein, albumin, LDH, glucose, pH, PCT) studies were performed in concurrently obtained pleural fluid and venous blood samples, cytologic and microbiologic (acid-fast bacillus smear/culture, nonspecific bacterial Gram stain/culture, fungal culture) studies were performed in pleural fluid. The patients were grouped as PPPE (n= 33) and non-PPPE (n= 32) after the diagnoses were definitely established. RESULTS: A total of 65 patients (M/F: 38/27; age: 57.53 ± 18.46 years) with exudative pleural fluids were assessed. In the 33 with PPPEs, 6 simple PPPEs, 5 complicated PPPEs and 22 empyemas were determined whereas in the 32 non-PPPEs, 9 tuberculous, 10 malignant, 6 paramalignant, 5 non-specific effusions and 2 chylothoraces were determined. Compared with the non-PPPE group, more fever, pneumonic infiltrations and fluid loculation, higher sedimentation, leukocyte, fluid LDH besides lower fluid glucose, pH, albumin and protein together with lower serum LDH were determined in the PPPE group (p< 0.05). Higher PS-PCT (1.03 ± 1.27 vs. 0.06 ± 0.06 ng/mL) and S-PCT levels (0.90 ± 1.44 vs. 0.05 ± 0.02 ng/mL) were determined in the PPPE group (p= 0.000). In the PPPE group, PS-PCT and S-PCT showed positive correlation with each other while PS-PCT did with sedimentation, leukocyte, CURB-65 and serum LDH, and S-PCT did with sedimentation, CURB-65 and duration of hospitalization. ROC curve, a specificity of 96.9% and a sensitivity of 57.5% were determined for an optimal PS-PCT cut-off level (0.285 ng/mL), and a specificity of %96.9 and a sensitivity of %66.6 for an optimal S-PCT cut-off level (0.105 ng/mL) that could differentiate PPPE. CONCLUSION: PS/S-PCT levels were found to be highly efficient in excluding PPPE but not sufficiently reliable in the diagnosis of it. However, these findings should be reassessed in a larger group of cases that have not been given any antibiotic/anti-inflammatory treatment.

Molecular detection and identification of mycobacterium tuberculosis complex and four clinically important nontuberculous mycobacterial species in smear-negative clinical samples by the genotype mycobacteria direct test.

Although the sensitivity and specificity of nucleic acid amplification assays are high with smear-positive samples, the sensitivity with smear-negative and extrapulmonary samples for the diagnosis of tuberculosis in suspicious tuberculosis cases still remains to be investigated. This study evaluates the performance of the GenoType Mycobacteria Direct (GTMD) test for rapid molecular detection and identification of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex and four clinically important nontuberculous mycobacteria (M. avium, M. intracellulare, M. kansasii, and M. malmoense) in smear-negative samples. A total of 1,570 samples (1,103 bronchial aspiration, 127 sputum, and 340 extrapulmonary samples) were analyzed. When we evaluated the performance criteria in combination with a positive culture result and/or the clinical outcome of the patients, the overall sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values were found to be 62.4, 99.5, 95.9, and 93.9%, respectively, whereas they were 63.2, 99.4, 95.7, and 92.8%, respectively, for pulmonary samples and 52.9, 100, 100, and 97.6%, respectively, for extrapulmonary samples. Among the culture-positive samples which had Mycobacterium species detectable by the GTMD test, three samples were identified to be M. intracellulare and one sample was identified to be M. avium. However, five M. intracellulare samples and an M. kansasii sample could not be identified by the molecular test and were found to be negative. The GTMD test has been a reliable, practical, and easy tool for rapid diagnosis of smear-negative pulmonary and extrapulmonary tuberculosis so that effective precautions may be taken and appropriate treatment may be initiated. However, the low sensitivity level should be considered in the differentiation of suspected tuberculosis and some other clinical condition until the culture result is found to be negative and a true picture of the clinical outcome is obtained.

Survival from severe pandemic H1N1 in urban and rural Turkey: a case series.

BACKGROUND: Pandemic influenza A (H1N1) was a serious health problem during the winter of 2009-2010 in Turkey. OBJECTIVE: To clarify the clinical and demographic characteristics of patients who needed intensive care in our region. METHODS: We conducted a prospective cohort study from November 2009 to February 2010 of demographic characteristics, clinical course, management strategies, 28-day mortality, and stay in the intensive care unit (ICU). RESULTS: During the study period, in our ICU we followed 18 patients (10 female) with H1N1. Their median (and IQR) age was 39 y (24-52 y), their median (and IQR) Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE II) score was 16 (10-25), and 7 (39%) of them lived in rural places. All 18 patients had acute lung injury (ALI) or acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). The most common risk factors for severe H1N1 infection were obesity (33%), COPD (16%), and pregnancy (11%). Thirteen patients (72%) needed mechanical ventilation at ICU admission. Mortality was 50% (9/18) at day 28. Significantly more survivors were urban dwellers than rural (82% vs 0%, P < .001). There were also statistically significant differences between survivors and nonsurvivors in success of noninvasive ventilation, time to confirmation of the H1N1 virus after ICU admission, creatinine, lactate dehydrogenase, pH, P(aCO(2)), and P(aO(2))/F(IO(2)). CONCLUSIONS: The most common clinical presentation was ALI/ARDS in H1N1 patients who needed intensive care. Living in rural areas might have affected those patients' access to advanced ICU facilities and early ventilatory support. Failure of noninvasive ventilation, late diagnosis, late antiviral therapy, high APACHE II score, and living in a rural area were associated with mortality.

[Investigation of pyrazinamide resistance in multidrug-resistant tuberculosis cases in Hospital of Pulmonary Diseases, Izmir, Turkey]. / Izmir Gögüs Hastaliklari Hastanesinde çok ilaca dirençli tüberküloz olgularinda pirazinamid direncinin arastirilmasi.

Pyrazinamide (PZA) is one of primary drugs for antituberculous treatment. The aim of this study was to determine the rates of PZA resistance in multidrug-resistant (MDR) and susceptible Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) strains isolated from patients who were admitted to our hospital. MDR strains have been isolated between 2005-2007 years, and susceptible strains were chosen randomly among the collection of the strains of the same period. MTB isolates were grown in BACTEC 960 full automatized broth system (Becton Dickinson, Sparks, MD) and Lowenstein-Jensen solid medium. Identification was done by radiometric BACTEC 460 NAP procedure. Antibiotic susceptibility testing against conventional anti-tuberculous drugs (streptomycin, isoniazide, rifampisin, etambutol) was performed by the radiometric BACTEC 460 system and PZA susceptibility was worked out by BD MGIT 960 PZA Kit (Becton Dickinson, Sparks, MD) with the use of 100.0 microg/ml critical concentrations of PZA. As a result, two of the 65 (3.1%) MTB susceptible strains and 16 of 63 (25.4%) MDR-MTB isolates were found resistant to PZA. In conclusion, due to the high PZA resistance rate in MDR-MTB isolates, susceptibility testing against PZA should be done in MDR-TB cases; however, since PZA resistance rate was low in new susceptible cases, it was thought that testing susceptibility of PZA is not necessary as a routine procedure in our region.

The effect of pulmonary rehabilitation on COPD exacerbation frequency per year.

OBJECTIVE: We aimed to investigate the effect of pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) on the number of exacerbations in chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD) patients. METHODS: The study included 82 patients referred to our hospital's PR Unit between June 2013 and June 2014. Patients were divided into two groups, including those with low exacerbation risk (low number of exacerbations) (Groups A + B) and those experiencing frequent exacerbations (Groups C+ D) according to the combined COPD assessment. RESULTS: Patients were included in a PR program that consisted of 16 sessions in total, held twice a week over a period of 2 months. After one year, patients were called to find out about their COPD exacerbation frequency. Groups presented similar characteristics in terms of age, BMI and smoking duration prior to the PR program (P > .05). The frequent exacerbators had lower scores in exercise capacity, arterial oxygenation, health-related quality of life and anxiety (P < .05). However, both groups exhibited significantly improved scores in the perceived dyspnea, FEV1 percentage, arterial oxygenation, exercise capacity, quality of life and anxiety after pulmonary rehabilitation (P < .05). The number of post-PR emergency referrals and hospitalization (P < .0001, P = .04), and depression score decreased significantly among the frequent exacerbators. Group 1 presented insignificant changes in the number of emergency referrals and hospitalizations (P < .05). CONCLUSION: Notwithstanding disease severity, PR treatment is reported to have positive effects on COPD patients in terms of perceived dyspnea, exercise capacity, arterial oxygenation, quality of life, anxiety and depression. This study found reduced number of emergency referrals and hospitalization among COPD patients with frequent exacerbations after PR.

Is a pulmonary rehabilitation program effective in COPD patients with chronic hypercapnic failure?

OBJECTIVES: Our study aimed to compare the effectiveness of a pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) program between hypercapnic and normocapnic patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). METHODS: Hypercapnic (Group 1) and normocapnic (Group 2) patients with COPD who participated in this study underwent a comprehensive 8-week out-patient PR program. RESULTS: A total of 122 patients were enrolled in the study; (n:86, n:36 groups 1 and 2, respectively.) After PR, both groups had better symptom scores as well as physical, social and emotional functioning. In addition, the groups had reduced dyspnea, anxiety and depression scores. After PR, the hypercapnic group improved significantly more in exercise capacity (∆6 MWT 50 m. vs 40 m.) compared with normocapnic patients (p=0.044). The hypercapnic group demonstrated a significant reduction in the PaCO2 levels after PR within (p<0.05) and between groups (p<0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Given the significant reductions in pCO2 levels and significant increases in exercise capacity and QoL parameters after PR, the patients with chronic hypercapnic failure apparently benefited from the PR.

Pulmonary Strongyloides stercoralis infection.

The 17-year-old male patient presented with fever, weakness, dyspnea and weight loss. His chest radiography demonstrated diffuse reticulonodular density, and high-resolution lung tomography indicated diffuse micronodules and prevalent ground-glass pattern. The findings were consistent with miliary involvement. The patient underwent examinations for rheumatology, immunology, cytology and infectious conditions. His immune system was normal and had no comorbidities or any history of immunosuppressive treatment. Strongyloides stercoralis larvae were noted upon direct inspection of the feces. Clinical and radiological improvement was achieved with albendazole 400 mg/day. This case is being presented since miliary involvement in the lungs caused by S. stercoralis infection in an individual with intact immune system is rare and difficult to diagnosis.

Prognostic factors affecting survival in malignant pleural mesothelioma: analysis of 125 subjects.

AIM OF THE STUDY: Determining the pre-treatment prognostic factors in malignant pleural mesothelioma is important in terms of estimating the course of the disease and selecting patients who are candidate for multimodal therapy. The aim of the study was to determine the prognostic factors affecting survival in patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma. STUDY DESIGN: One hundred and twenty-five patients who had been diagnosed histologically as having malignant pleural mesothelioma over the past 5 years were evaluated retrospectively. Relationships of survival of the patients with their age, gender, exposure to asbestos, smoking history, platelet, hemoglobin, leukocyte (WBC) and serum LDH values, histology, performance score and stage of disease were examined. RESULTS: Advanced clinical stage, N2 nodal involvement and the presence of distant metastasis were found to be related to survival. Sarcomatous histology was found to be a poor prognostic factor independently of other factors. CONCLUSIONS: We showed that histological subtype and stage of disease were the most important parameters in planning the treatment, especially in determining the patients who were candidate for multimodal treatment and in estimating the prognosis.

Molecular diversity of drug resistant mycobacterium tuberculosis strains in Western Turkey.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate the molecular diversity and clonal relationship of drug resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains isolated in Western Turkey. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 87 strains isolated between 2006 and 2009, eight of which were rifampicin monoresistant and 79 were multidrug resistant, were analyzed with IS6110 RFLP and spoligotyping methods. RESULTS: The results of spoligotyping showed that 7% of the strains were orphans, and 8% were undefined for family in the SpolDB4 database. Major families of the strains were LAM (38%), T (35%), Haarlem (7%), Beijing (2%), S (2%) and U (1%) families. The clustering rate by spoligotyping was calculated as 75%. The most predominant SIT cluster was SIT41 (29%). According to the results of IS6110 RFLP, 71 different patterns of IS6110 were observed. Low copy number was found in 26% of the strains. When the results of two methods were combined, the final clustering rate was calculated as 26%. CONCLUSIONS: The genotypical distribution of drug resistant tuberculosis isolates in our region indicates genetic diversity and the clustering rate was found low in our region. However, more comprehensive and long-term molecular epidemiological studies are needed to control the drug resistant strains.