Evaluation of the Becton Dickinson Directigen test for respiratory syncytial virus in nasopharyngeal aspirates. |
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Authors: | T Kok K Barancek C J Burrell |
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Affiliation: | Division of Medical Virology, Institute of Medical and Veterinary Science, Adelaide, South Australia. |
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Abstract: | A premarket trial of the Becton Dickinson Directigen respiratory syncytial virus membrane-based enzyme immunoassay compared the test with virus isolation for the detection of respiratory syncytial virus in 583 nasopharyngeal aspirates. After modification, the Directigen test showed a sensitivity of 83% and a specificity of 90%. It offers the potential for an efficient bedside test--without the need for any equipment--for the diagnosis of respiratory syncytial virus infection and requires only a 0.25-ml sample volume. However, for optimum reliability, freezing-thawing of samples and access to a confirmatory test were shown to be necessary. |
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