Respiratory tract infections are highly prevalent in children. Although bacteria cause these infections, viruses are the main culprits as most of the infections are viral in origin. Upper respiratory tract infections like the common cold are usually easy to identify. But lower respiratory tract infections often require laboratory investigations as knowledge of the causative pathogen is essential to managing the disease and implementing control measures. And multiplex PCR tests play an essential role.
The Severe Current Situation of Respiratory Infections in Children
Respiratory tract infections remain the leading cause of death in children worldwide, with children developing six respiratory tract infections on average each year [1, 2]. About 6.6 million children under five die each year worldwide, and nearly one-third of these deaths occur due to severe respiratory infections [3]. Common respiratory diseases in children include asthma, sinusitis, bronchitis, tracheobronchitis, bronchiolitis, pharyngitis, and pneumonia.
The challenges of identifying clinical symptoms of respiratory infections in children and the need for a robust testing method for many pathogens
Though most infections are viral in origin, the respiratory pathogen remains undetected due to the unavailability of effective and affordable diagnostic tools [4]. However, bacteria also cause respiratory tract infections, especially pneumonia [5]. The clinical symptoms often overlap, whether viral or bacterial, and identification can be difficult. Even if the doctor can differentiate between viral or bacterial respiratory infections, narrowing down the differentials to the exact pathogen is extremely challenging.
Figure 2. Identifying Lower Respiratory Tract Infection
It is difficult for doctors to recommend an exact diagnostic test for detecting respiratory pathogens, and no wonder they often end up recommending the wrong one. Consequently, a vital testing method for many pathogens was needed to overcome these gross inefficiencies.
Enter the multiplex PCR test for respiratory pathogen detection
While the PCR revolutionized the diagnosis of infectious diseases, the traditional test methods were far from perfect. Represented by isolation assessments, many were set back by their long testing time or low sensitiveness. That is why multiplex PCR – was developed. It helps detect multiple targets in a single PCR experiment – i.e., more than one target sequence in a sample is amplified in a single tube. It is a simple, rapid, cost-effective method to detect common respiratory pathogens.
Applications of multiplex PCR testing in molecular diagnosis of Respiratory Infections in Children
Although most respiratory infections like the common cold are mild, they can also be extremely severe in infants, children, or older adults. Acute lower respiratory tract infections are the leading cause of death in children under five. According to WHO, pneumonia alone accounted for 14 percent of all the deaths in children under five [6]. The severity of respiratory diseases depends upon the causative pathogen. For example, pneumonia caused by RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) can be life-threatening and often requires hospitalization of the newborn or infant.
Figure 3. Lower Respiratory Tract Infection Diagnosis in Children
Since infants and children are feeble and require extra care, prompt diagnosis of the respiratory pathogen is crucial under such conditions. A multiplex PCR test comes in very handy when a child has a respiratory infection, providing more information with less sample in a time-effective way. It eliminates the need for multiple tests and provides cost-effective detection of respiratory pathogens with better precision and higher diagnostic accuracy.
How does the multiplex PCR testing help improve the precision of detection, Infection prevention, and Antimicrobial stewardship?
Multiplex PCR testing has become the backbone of lab investigations in many fields of science, including diagnosing infectious diseases. A multiplex PCR is very efficient and offers precision and diagnostic accuracy in various ways. For example, it is immensely beneficial when the clinical sample is either difficult to collect and small in volume or when different pathogens cause similar clinical presentations. When presented with such problems, a multiplex PCR helps detect multiple respiratory pathogens in a single reaction mixture while conserving costly polymerase and templates in limited supply.
Figure 4. Sansure Respiratory Pathogens Multiplex Nucleic Acid Diagnostic Kit
In addition, when RSVs or other life-threatening microbes are suspected, a pediatrician needs prompt diagnostic information about the child’s respiratory infection for proper management. In situations like these, multiplex PCR testing provides crucial life-saving information without much delay. Some multiplex panels like Sansure’s multiplex PCR diagnostic kits can detect up to 7 viruses or bacteria within a couple of hours. A meta-analysis of twenty studies showed that the multiplex PCR tests are highly accurate and provide rapid, early diagnosis of respiratory pathogens [7].
Furthermore, two of the most substantial benefits of multiplex PCR are eliminating false negatives and positives. Its internal control monitoring reduces the false negatives while preventing contamination and decreasing other lab mistakes during the experiment eliminate false positives. To add more, multiplex PCRs are straightforward, adaptable, and easy to operate. That is why, over the years, multiplex PCRs have become very common in diagnostic laboratory settings of hospitals and private clinical practices alike.
The Takeaway
Respiratory infections among children necessitate the routine use of multiplex PCR kits, not only in laboratory settings of hospitals but even in pediatric clinical practices as well. If you face difficulties detecting respiratory pathogens using simple PCRs in your pediatric practice and are looking for multiplex PCRs, or your hospital laboratory needs updated multiplex PCRs, you are in the right place. Sansure Biotech Inc. is here to help people just like you. With the latest technology in molecular diagnosis, Sansure Biotech Inc. aims to facilitate pathogen identification, disease diagnosis, infection prevention, and save lives.
To learn more about Sansure Biotech Inc.’s multiplex PCRs or other diagnostic products (more than 500 offered by Sansure), visit our website at https://www.sansureglobal.com/.