Detection of meningeal bacteris in cerebrospinal fluid by multiplex PCR

Semi-nested multiplex PCR was used for rapid detection of Haemophilus influenzae, Niesseria meningitidis bacterials and streptococci in cerebrospinal fluid of suspect purulent meningitis patients. The method based on bacterial 16SrRNA gene amplification to be in all bacteria. With high specificity and sensitivity, the method had a detection limit of 10o CFU/ml on S.pneumoniae culture. Tested on 49 cerebrospinal fluid samples, the method detected 14/15 infected samples, in which 3 cases were infected with bacteria other than those investigated