Polymerase chain reaction for diagnosis of meningococcal meningitis
Abstract
Meningococcal disease is normally suspected on clinical grounds but confirmed by isolation of Neisseria meningitidis from blood or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), or by detection of gram-negative diplococci in CSF. After parenteral antibiotics are started the isolation rate of meningococci from blood cultures drops from 50% to less than 5% and the chances of CSF being positive by culture or microscopy are also reduced. We used the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in a blinded study to detect meningococcal DNA in 54 CSF samples from patients with meningococcal disease or from controls. The PCR primers were specific for the meningococcal insertion sequence IS1106. The sensitivity and specificity of this PCR for diagnosis of meningococcal meningitis were both 91%. Sensitivity was not affected by prior antibiotic treatment. The IS1106 PCR is a rapid and sensitive test for confirmation of the diagnosis of meningococcal meningitis.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
In studies assessing meningococcal PCR versus culture, sensitivity ranged from 91% to 100% with a median of 97%, and median specificity was 96% (range 91%-100%).
“Sensitivity in these studies ranged from 91% to 100% with a median of 97% and median specificity was 96% (range 91%–100%).”
From Molecular diagnostics in cerebrospinal fluid for the diagnosis of central nervous system infections (2024) · cites this paper as [60]
Cites
Saiki, R. K., Scharf, S., Faloona, F., Mullis, K. B., Horn, G. T., Erlich, H. A., & Arnheim, N. (1985) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.2999980 · Cited by 8,956 · see citing works
Detection of mycobacterial DNA in sarcoidosis and tuberculosis with polymerase chain reaction
Saboor, S. A., Saboor, S. A., McFadden, J., et al. (1992) · The Lancet · doi:10.1016/0140-6736(92)90535-b · Cited by 275 · see citing works
Early treatment with parenteral penicillin in meningococcal disease.
Cartwright, K., Reilly, S., White, D., & Stuart, J. (1992) · BMJ · doi:10.1136/bmj.305.6846.143 · Cited by 265 · see citing works
Strang, J., & Pugh, E. J. (1992) · BMJ · doi:10.1136/bmj.305.6846.141 · Cited by 142 · see citing works
Bohr, V., Rasmussen, N., Hansen, B., Kjersem, H., Jessen, O., Johnsen, N., & Kristensen, H. S. (1983) · Journal of Infection · doi:10.1016/s0163-4453(83)96980-3 · Cited by 112 · see citing works
Rapid diagnosis of meningococcal meningitis by polymerase chain reaction
Kristiansen, B., Ask, E., Jenkins, A., et al. (1991) · The Lancet · doi:10.1016/0140-6736(91)93262-8 · Cited by 100 · see citing works
AN OUTBREAK OF MENINGOCOCCAL DISEASE IN GLOUCESTERSHIRE
Cartwright, K. V., Stuart, J. M., & Noah, N. D. (1986) · The Lancet · doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(86)90124-8 · Cited by 97 · see citing works
Completeness of statutory notification for acute bacterial meningitis.
Goldacre, M. J., & Miller, D. L. (1976) · BMJ · doi:10.1136/bmj.2.6034.501 · Cited by 41 · see citing works
Acute bacterial maningitis in childhood: aspects of prehospital care in 687 cases.
Goldacre, M. J. (1977) · Archives of Disease in Childhood · doi:10.1136/adc.52.6.501 · Cited by 18 · see citing works
Phylogenetic and epidemiological analysis ofNeisseria meningitidisusing DNA probes
Ni, H., Knight, A. I., Cartwright, K. A. V., et al. (1992) · Epidemiology and Infection · doi:10.1017/s0950268800050184 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Self-citation
Flagged first, then by citations
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Practice Guidelines for the Management of Bacterial Meningitis
Tunkel, A. R., Hartman, B. J., Kaplan, S. L., Kaufman, B. A., Roos, K. L., Scheld, W. M., & Whitley, R. J. (2004) · Clinical Infectious Diseases · doi:10.1086/425368 · Cited by 2,308 · see citing works
Epidemiology, Diagnosis, and Antimicrobial Treatment of Acute Bacterial Meningitis
Brouwer, M. C., Tunkel, A. R., & van de Beek, D. (2010) · Clinical Microbiology Reviews · doi:10.1128/cmr.00070-09 · Cited by 930 · see citing works
Porritt, R. J., Mercer, J. L., & Munro, R. (2000) · Pathology · doi:10.1080/003130200104565 · Cited by 40 · see citing works
Molecular diagnostics in cerebrospinal fluid for the diagnosis of central nervous system infections
Olie, S. E., Andersen, C. Ø., van de Beek, D., & Brouwer, M. C. (2024) · Clinical Microbiology Reviews · doi:10.1128/cmr.00021-24 · Cited by 38 · see citing works
“Controls were included in three studies and consisted mostly of patients with other causes of meningitis as well as other non-infectious diseases (60–62).”
- Authors
- NI, H.
- Affiliations
- University of Surrey (GB)
- Corresponding author
- NI, H
- Venue
- The Lancet
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 1992-12
- Volume
- 340
- Issue
- 8833
- Pages
- 1432-1434
- ISSN
- 0099-5355 (ISSN-L)
- 0140-6736
- OpenAlex
- W2071571202
- Cited by
- 131
- References
- 10
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 1 · 2022: 1 · 2021: 1 · 2020: 1 · 2019: 2 · 2016: 1 · 2015: 2 · 2014: 1 · 2013: 2 · 2012: 5
- FWCI
- 4.38
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- The Lancet (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Immunology and Microbiology › Microbiology › Bacterial Infections and Vaccines
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Clinical Biochemistry › Bacterial Identification and Susceptibility Testing
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Neonatal and Maternal Infections
- Keywords
- meningococcal meningitis, Neisseria meningitidis, polymerase chain reaction diagnosis, cerebrospinal fluid, sensitivity and specificity, antibiotic therapy
- MeSH terms
- DNA, Bacterial, Humans, Meningitis, Meningococcal, Neisseria meningitidis, Sensitivity and Specificity, Polymerase Chain Reaction
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
