Polymerase chain reaction of peripheral blood as a tool for the diagnosis of visceral leishmaniasis in children
Mem. Inst. Oswaldo Cruz
;
105(3): 310-313, May 2010. ilus, tab
Article
in English
| LILACS
| ID: lil-547312
ABSTRACT
The diagnosis of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) generally requires the use of invasive tests for the collection of infected tissue (aspirates of bone marrow, spleen, liver or lymph nodes). This difficulty has led to the search for safer and less painful techniques to confirm the occurrence of the disease in children. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a method that is advantageous in that it allows the use of peripheral blood samples for diagnosis. This paper reports the utilisation of PCR on peripheral blood samples to diagnose VL in 45 children in Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. This technique is compared with methods carried out using tissue collected by invasive procedures, including direct microscopy, culture and detection of Leishmania DNA by PCR in bone marrow aspirates. The results show that PCR of peripheral blood provides great sensitivity (95.6 percent) that is similar to that from the PCR of bone marrow aspirates (91.1 percent) and higher than that achieved with microscopy (80 percent) or culture (26.7 percent) methods. PCR of peripheral blood proved to be a suitable tool for the diagnosis of VL in children because it is highly sensitive and safe, with tissue collection being less invasive than in traditional tests.
Full text:
Available
Index:
LILACS (Americas)
Main subject:
Polymerase Chain Reaction
/
Leishmaniasis, Visceral
Type of study:
Diagnostic study
/
Evaluation studies
Limits:
Adolescent
/
Child
/
Child, preschool
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Infant
/
Male
Language:
English
Journal:
Mem. Inst. Oswaldo Cruz
Journal subject:
Tropical Medicine
/
Parasitology
Year:
2010
Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Brazil
Institution/Affiliation country:
Fiocruz/BR
/
Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul/BR
Similar
MEDLINE
...
LILACS
LIS