Comparison of an [HM -CAPs] ELISA test and the gold standard tests for detecting helicobacter pylori infection

Helicobacter pylori [H. pylori] is one of the main causes of gastritis and is highly related to gastric and duodenal cancer. Different methods are i n t roduced for diagnosis of bacterial infections, but serologic tests are more common. In this study, an ELISA [Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay] test was performed using bacterial high molecular cell-associated proteins [HM-CAPs] containing urease. The sensitivity and specificity of this method was then compared with those using histological [Giemsa and/or modified Gram staining] as well as bacterial culture findings, both considered as gold standard tests for diagnosis. HM-CAPs containing bacterialurease, were extracted by NOG [n-octyl-beta-Dglycopyranoside] detergent and purified on sephacryl gel S-300 HR. Besides, biopsy specimens from antral portion of gastric mucosa together with sera of 168 patients [85 male and 83 female], suspected of H. pylori infection, were obtained. The results of culture and/or histological examinations [gold standard tests] were compared with those of serum ELISA test. Sensitivity and specificity of HM-CAPs ELISA test as compared with histological findings and/or bacterial culture were 93.3% and 95.1% respectively. ELISA test using HM-CAPs antigen is highly specific and sensitive. Therefore, it could be used for serological diagnosis of H. pylori infection

Bacteriology and sensitivity patterns of acute adult bacterial meningitis: a seven-year overview

Bacterial meningitis is a potentially fatal infection and its rapid diagnosis has an important role in the prognosis of the disease. The objective of this study was to determine the microscopic, bacteriologic and clinical characteristics of adult bacterial meningitis in Chaharmahal province of Iran over a period of seven years. Materials and Thirty-one patients with bacterial meningitis in Shahrekord Kashani Hospital were observed in a period of seven years [Oct. 1993 - Sept. 2000]. The clinical findings, type of bacteria isolated from cerebrospinal fluid [CSF] samples, CSF leucocyte counts, CSF cultures and the antibiotic sensitivity profile of the common bacterial isolates were evaluated. The annual incidence of the disease was about 0.64 per 100,000 inhabitants. Neck stiffness and impairment of consciousness were seen only in a half of Behnam Zamanzad, Hedayatollah Shirzadeh, Mohammad Reza Naficy Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences, Shahrekord, Iran the cases. In 50% of patients, the CSF leucocyte counts were 1000-10,000/mm3, while in 26% of the cases the count was below 500/mm3. Eighty-three% of CSF cultures were reported positive. Steptococcus pneumoniae [58%], Neisseria meningitidis [19%] and Gram negative enteric bacilli [6%] were the most common isolates. Gram's stain of sedimented CSF helped in the presumptive identification of the causative bacteria in 80% of the cases. Fifty% of the pneumococcal isolates were resistant to penicillin and 13% were resistant to chloramphenicol. Conclusions: A combination of CSF culture and microscopic examination is highly specific for early diagnosis of bacterial meningitis, and performing an antibacterial sensitivity test is recommended before any antibiotic therapy