Product category:
Clinical chemistry analysis
News Release from: Oxoid | Subject: Wellcogen
Edited by the Laboratorytalk Editorial
Team on 30 June 2005
Rapid meningitis tests for emergency
situations
Ability to detect the major causes of serious bacterial meningitis in body fluids within half an hour is of great value in emergency situations, given the high mortality rate of bacterial meningitis
The Wellcogen range of rapid diagnostic tests, available from Oxoid, will detect the major causes of serious bacterial meningitis in body fluids, such as serum and cerebro-spinal fluid (CSF), within half an hour Such speed is of great value in emergency situations given the high mortality rate of bacterial meningitis
This article was originally published on Laboratorytalk on 18 Jan 2002 at 8.00am (UK)
Related stories
Test to detect C difficile toxin A
Clostridium difficile is thought to be present in up to a fifth of hospital patients, and can cause the life-threatening condition PMC. Oxoid reports continuing sales growth for its diagnostic test
Culture medium for water quality monitoring
Oxoid has launched its water plate count agar, a medium to permit the enumeration of culturable micro-organisms from water using a colony count technique
The severity of bacterial meningitis, and its ability to spread in certain situations, was recently highlighted in China where an outbreak of bacterial meningitis affected more than 250 people and resulted in at least 16 deaths throughout January 2005.
Authorities there identified that prompt reporting of infection was among the important measures required to address this outbreak.
The simple Wellcogen latex agglutination tests can provide rapid, first-line confirmation of an acute infection of bacterial meningitis.
Results are available in as little as ten minutes for CSF (slightly longer for serum due to the time taken for the blood to clot) giving valuable guidance to doctors, pending the results of culture investigations, and allowing appropriate treatment to be initiated immediately.
These tests do not require the presence of viable organisms and can provide a positive result if there is a detectable level of antigen in the sample.
The tests can be used to detect neonatal sepsis in addition to childhood and adult meningitis, identifying the main, potentially fatal bacterial strains: streptococcal group B (product code 30858701), haemophilus influenzae B (30858801), streptococcus pneumoniae (30859001), neisseria meningitidis WACY (R30859203) and Neisseria meningitidis B (30859502).
In addition to the separate kits available for each of these significant strains, a combined kit is available for the detection of all five major strains that cause meningitis (product code 30859602).
Each Wellcogen test kit contains sufficient materials for 30 tests, including control and test latex reagents, positive and negative controls, test cards, mixing sticks and pipettes. Request a free brochure from Oxoid ...
• Oxoid: contact details and other news
• Email this article to a colleague
• Register for the free Laboratorytalk email newsletter
• Laboratorytalk Home Page
Search the Pro-Talk network of sites
