Point of Care Diagnostic Markers for Neonatal Sepsis

Excerpt

Sepsis is a leading cause of neonatal mortality. Early and accurate diagnosis of sepsis will improve clinical outcomes and reduce overuse of antibiotics. As a significant proportion of the affected neonates are asymptomatic, early diagnosis of sepsis is often challenging. Though blood culture is the gold standard investigation for diagnosis, the positivity rate is low as it depends on blood volume inoculated, level of bacteremia and intrapartum antibiotic use. Molecular assays including polymerase chain reaction and hybridization methods have rapid detection time compared to blood culture. However, detection of pathogen DNA in the absence of viable organisms and false negative results due to the presence of inhibitors require careful scrutiny. A Point of Care (POC) test provides a rapid medical diagnosis for the treating physician in real time and is very useful in emergency situations or resource limited settings. POC tests for early sepsis detection, especially non-invasive techniques are gaining importance in the community setting. …