Preoperative PCR analysis of synovial fluid has limited value for the diagnosis of periprosthetic joint infections of total knee arthroplasties.

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Preoperative diagnosis of periprosthetic joint infection (PJI) is important because of the therapeutic consequences. This prospective study was designed to answer the question, if preoperative PCR analysis of the synovial fluid in addition to the culture and the CRP analysis of the blood are helpful for the diagnosis of PJI in knee arthroplasties. Before revision CRP analysis of the blood, cultivation and PCR analysis of synovial fluid of 116 knee endoprostheses were performed. During revision surgery, five tissue samples of the periprosthetic tissue were cultured and five further samples subjected to histological analysis. These analyses of the periprosthetic tissue were used to verify the results of the preoperative diagnostic methods. Twenty-seven prostheses were identified as infected (prevalence 23.3%). The combined analyses of the joint fluid cultivation and the CRP blood level resulted in a sensitivity of 77.8%, a specificity of 95.5%, a positive-predictive value of 84.0%, a negative-predictive value of 93.4% and an accuracy of 91.4%. The PCR analysis of the synovial fluid resulted in a sensitivity of 55.6%, a specificity of 82.0%, a positive-predictive value of 48.4%, a negative-predictive value of 85.9% and an accuracy of 75.9%. The sensitivity for culture of the aspirate and PCR analysis in combination with an elevated CRP level was 85.2%, the specificity 82.0%, the positive-predictive value 58.9%, the negative-predictive value 94.8% and the accuracy 82.7%. The preoperative PCR analysis of synovial fluid has only limited value in addition to the standard culture analysis.