Use Of Rapid Diagnostic Tests Research Articles

Knowledge, attitude and practices of Rapid Diagnostic Tests (RDTs) among medical laboratory professionals in some health facilities in Niger, Benue, Nasarawa States and Federal Capital Territory

The knowledge and attitudes and practices of RDT among medical laboratory professionals was investigated using structured questionnaire. Medical laboratory practitioners were the target-respondents. 175(80%) of the respondents are medical laboratory scientists, and 9(4%) were medical laboratory assistants while 35(16%) were medical laboratory technicians. Most respondents (67%) were from government hospitals. CareStart followed by SD Bioline were the most frequently used in government health facilities owing to their being distributed freely by NGOs. All (100%) of the medical laboratory professionals who responded were aware of RDT use while 151(69%) trust the results of RDTs adjudging the results to be closely related to that of microscopy and 174(79.5%) see it as yielding faster results. Keywords: RDTs; medical laboratory professionals; diagnosis.

Inpatient Antibiotic Stewardship Interventions in the Adult Oncology and Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant Population: A Review of the Literature

Objective: To review the use of antibiotic stewardship interventions in the adult oncology and hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) populations. Data Sources: A literature search of PubMed was performed from inception to October 31, 2019. The general search terms used were oncology, cancer, hematologic malignancy, antimicrobial stewardship, antibiotic stewardship, febrile neutropenia, neutropenic fever, de-escalation, discontinuation, prophylaxis, practice guidelines, clinical pathway, rapid diagnostics, Filmarray, Verigene, MALDI-TOF, antibiotic allergy, and antimicrobial resistance. Study Selection and Data Extraction: Relevant English-language studies describing interventions supported by the Infectious Diseases Society of America guidelines on "Implementing an Antibiotic Stewardship Program" were included. Data Synthesis: Antibiotic stewardship publications in the oncology population have increased in recent years. Studies have described the impact of stewardship interventions, including preauthorization, prospective audit and feedback, implementation of clinical pathways, de-escalation of empirical antibiotics for febrile neutropenia (FN) prior to neutrophil recovery, allergy assessments, and use of rapid diagnostic testing. Many of these interventions have been shown to decrease antibiotic use without increased negative consequences, such as affecting length of stay or mortality. Relevance to Patient Care and Clinical Practice: This review synthesizes available evidence for implementing antibiotic stewardship interventions, particularly de-escalation of antibiotics for FN and implementation of clinical pathways for FN and sepsis, in oncology patients and HCT recipients. Summary tables highlight studies and specific research needs for clinicians. Conclusions: Immunocompromised populations, including oncology patients, have often been excluded from stewardship studies. Antibiotic stewardship is effective in reducing antibiotic consumption and improving outcomes in this patient population, although more quality data are needed.

Potential Use of Community-Based Rapid Diagnostic Tests for Febrile Illnesses: Formative Research in Peru and Cambodia.

In 2012, the U.S. Defense Threat Reduction Agency Joint Science and Technology Office initiated a program to develop novel point-of-need diagnostic devices for surveillance of emerging infectious diseases including dengue, malaria, plague, and melioidosis. Prior to distribution of devices to observe their correct use among community members in Iquitos, Peru, and Phnom Penh, Cambodia, research was conducted to: 1) assess acceptability of use, including the motivation to use a rapid diagnostic test (RDT) before or instead of seeking care at a health facility, 2) explore comprehension of RDT use instructions, and 3) examine possible strategies for large scale RDT distribution and use at each site. In February 2014, 9 focus group discussions (FGD) with community members and 5 FGD with health professionals were conducted in Iquitos, and 9 FGD with community members and 9 in-depth interviews with health professionals in Phnom Penh. In both places, participants agreed to use the device themselves (involving finger prick) or could identify someone who could do so in their home or neighborhood. The main incentive to RDT use in both sites was the ability for device results to be used for care facilitation (post confirmatory tests), specifically reduced wait times to be seen or obtain a diagnosis. Comprehension of RDT use instructions was assessed in Iquitos by asking some participants to apply the device to research team members; after watching a short video, most steps were done correctly. In Phnom Penh, participants were asked to describe each step after reading the instructions; they struggled with comprehension. Health professionals’ main concerns in both sites were their community’s ability to accurately use the test, handle complicated instructions, and safety (i.e., disposal of lancets). Health system structure and ability to use home diagnostic devices varied in the two disease endemic sites, with substantial challenges in each, suggesting the need for different strategies for RDT large scale community use, and illustrating the value of formative research before deployment of novel technologies.

656. Prioritizing Gram-Negative Bacteremia (GNB) Cases for Rapid Detection by β-Lactam Resistance (BLR) and Patient Outcomes

BackgroundGNB is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. The availability of rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) provides an opportunity to improve outcomes. Our goal was to review GNB and its empiric treatment at our center in order to devise rational approaches to diagnostic stewardship and use of RDTs.MethodsAll patients with GNB from 2010 to 2018 were evaluated. BLR was defined by 2019 CLSI breakpoints; phenotypes are shown in Table 1.ResultsA total of 2795 GNB cases were included (Table 2); 57% occurred within the first 24 hours of hospitalization and 29.3% in the ICU. The median length of stay (LOS) was 12 days; 17.2% of patients were re-admitted within 30 days. Fourteen- and 30-day mortality rates were 13.7% and 19.5%, respectively. Rates of death were higher (30 days; 26.3% vs. 17.1%; P < 0.001) and median LOS longer (17 vs. 11 days; P < 0.001) among patients with BLR compared with susceptible GNB. Thirty-day mortality rates were highest for CRE (30.1%) and BLR P. aeruginosa (BLR-Pa; 32.8%, Figure 1). 47.7% of BLR GNB were non-CRE/ESBL, which demonstrated higher mortality rates than CRE/ESBL (30 days; 27.6% vs. 21.2%; P = 0.048). Most common empiric regimens prescribed were piperacillin–tazobactam (TZP; 50.3%), cefepime (FEP; 24.2%), carbapenem (9.3%), or other agents (16.2%). 21.6% of GNB patients received inactive empiric treatment (IET). Empiric TZP (21.9%) was more likely to be inactive than FEP (17.5%; P = 0.05), but not a carbapenem (20.7%; P = NS). 57.6% of patients with inhibitor-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (IRE) received TZP empirically. Receipt of IET was associated with higher rates of death (30 days; 22.5% vs. 16.7, P = 0.03) and longer LOS (14 vs. 11 days; P < 0.001) than receipt of active ET. Rates of IET varied by pathogen (Figure 1).ConclusionIET is common against BLR GNB and associated with poor pt outcomes, highlighting the potential for RDTs and diagnostic stewardship teams (DSTs) to improve care. Genotypic RDTs detect most CRE/ESBL, but may miss nearly 50% of BLR GNB cases at our center. BLR-Pa and IRE are pathogens associated with prolonged LOS, and high rates of IET and death. These pathogens could be detected earlier by phenotypic RDTs and prioritized by DSTs to optimize early treatment regimens. Disclosures All authors: No reported disclosures.

141. Use of Rapid Diagnostic Testing in Gram-negative Bloodstream Infections with and without Antimicrobial Stewardship

BackgroundVerigene Blood Culture Gram-Negative (VBC-GN) is a rapid diagnostic test (RDT) that can detect key GNs and resistance within hours from Gram-stain. Numerous studies have shown that RDTs in BSIs improve clinical outcomes, particularly with active antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) intervention. Little is known regarding outcomes in GN BSI without vs. with AMS intervention.MethodsA retrospective three-part quasi-experimental study of adult patients with GN BSI from December 2014 to April 2018. VBC-GN was introduced September 2015 and AMS review was implemented October 2017. Antibiotics were appropriate if active in vitro against isolated GN. Optimal antibiotics were not overly broad, accounted for resistance, source of infection, and other infecting organisms. Comparisons were made using Chi-squared for nominal variables and Kaplan–Meier with log-rank for time to event analysis.ResultsIn total, 772 patients met inclusion. The most common source was urinary (30.1%) and E. coli was the most common GN (37.9%). Infectious Disease consults increased with each group (50.6% vs. 67.9% vs. 81.8%, P < 0.001). More patients pre-RDT (37.36%) and RDT+AMS (35.6%) compared with RDT only (24.6%) were critically ill, P = 0.001. Optimal therapy was achieved in more patients in RDT-only (79%) and RDT+AMS (86%) groups compared with pre-RDT (66%), P < 0.001. More patients in the pre-RDT group (44.7%) were appropriately de-escalated compared with RDT only (31.6%) and RDT + AMS (38.7%), P = 0.026. Appropriate escalation occurred most often in the RDT-only group (39.3%) vs. pre-RDT (15.2%) and RDT + AMS (14.2%), P = 0.019. Median post-BSI length of stay (8.2 vs. 7.1 vs. 8.5 days, P = 0.226) and inpatient mortality (10.8% vs. 14.3% vs. 11.4%, P = 0.493) were similar.ConclusionWith the implementation of VBC-GN RDT there was a significantly decreased time to optimal therapy, mainly based on necessary antibiotic escalation. Antibiotic de-escalation remained a challenge, even with active AMS review. Disclosures All authors: No reported disclosures.

Evaluation of Empiric β-Lactam Susceptibility Prediction among Enterobacteriaceae by Molecular β-Lactamase Gene Testing.

The use of rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) for blood cultures has become standard of care in the United States to inform early antimicrobial optimization. The relative ability of genotypic and phenotypic approaches to identify beta-lactam susceptibility in Escherichia coli, Klebsiella spp., and Proteus mirabilis was evaluated, using incidence rates of resistance mechanisms to third-generation cephalosporins, aztreonam, and piperacillin-tazobactam seen across U.S. census regions. Overall, the presence of CTX-M, KPC, and/or NDM genes was 81% (range, 57 to 87%) sensitive for the prediction of ceftriaxone, ceftazidime, and aztreonam resistance and 73% (range, 25 to 90%) sensitive for the detection of piperacillin-tazobactam resistance. The sensitivity of KPC or NDM to predict imipenem or meropenem resistance was 94.3% overall, and for meropenem ranged from 70 to 100% across U.S. census regions. Institutions that use genotypic RDTs to inform therapeutic de-escalation decisions should be aware of the incidence-base performance across U.S. geographies and in different patient populations, where resistance rates may vary.

Plasmodium vivax cerebral malaria in an adult patient in Sudan

BackgroundPlasmodium vivax infection is rising in sub-Saharan Africa, where Plasmodium falciparum is responsible for more than 90% of malaria cases. While P. vivax is identified as a major cause of severe and cerebral malaria in South east Asia, the Pacific and South America, most of the severe and cerebral cases in Africa were attributed to P. falciparum. Cases of severe malaria due to P. vivax are emerging in Africa. A few severe P. vivax cases were reported in Eastern Sudan and they were underestimated due to the lack of accurate diagnosis, low parasitaemia and seldom use of rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs).Case presentationA 60-year-old Sudanese male presented to the Al Kuwaiti hospital in the Sudan capital Khartoum. On admission, the patient was complaining of fever (measured temperature was 38 °C), sweating, chills, vomiting and confusion in the past 2 days prior to his admission. He rapidly deteriorated into a coma state within 48 h of the admission, with significant neck stiffness. He was admitted to the intensive care unit and was suspected of meningitis. Lumbar puncture was not performed since the patient was suffering from spinal cord disc. Brain CT scan was unremarkable. Several biochemical, haematological tests, and blood film for malaria were performed. The results of the laboratory tests were within the normal range except of mild elevation of the total white blood cell count and a significant decrease in the platelets count. Malaria parasites were seen in the blood film with high parasitaemia (quantified as 3 +++). The patient was diagnosed as P. vivax cerebral malaria based on the positive blood film and the amplification of P. vivax specific 499 bp amplicon using Plasmodium multi-species multiplex Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). The patient was treated with quinine 10 mg/kg body weight for 10 days followed by primaquine 15 mg/days PO for 2 weeks. The symptoms subsided within 48 h and the patients was cured and released from the hospital.ConclusionsPlasmodium vivax is an emerging cause of cerebral malaria in adults in Sudan and should be considered in the differential diagnosis of cerebral malaria for proper management of patients.

Factors associated with isoniazid resistant tuberculosis among human immunodeficiency virus positive patients in Swaziland: a case-control study

BackgroundIsoniazid resistant tuberculosis is the most prevalent type of resistance in Swaziland and over two-thirds of the isoniazid resistant tuberculosis patients are tuberculosis and human immunodeficiency virus co-infected. The study aimed to determine risk factors associated with isoniazid resistant tuberculosis among human immunodeficiency virus positive patients in Swaziland.MethodsThis was a case-control study conducted in nine healthcare facilities across Swaziland. Cases were patients with isoniazid resistant tuberculosis (including 78 patients with isoniazid mono-resistant tuberculosis, 42 with polydrug-resistant tuberculosis, and 77 with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis). Controls were presumed drug-susceptible tuberculosis patients (n = 203). Multinomial logistic regression was used to determine related factors.ResultsThe median time lag from diagnosis to tuberculosis treatment initiation was 50 days for isoniazid mono or poly drug-resistant tuberculosis, 17 days for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis compared to 1 day for drug-susceptible tuberculosis patients. History of previous tuberculosis treatment was positively associated with either isoniazid mono or poly drug-resistant tuberculosis (OR = 7.91, 95% CI: 4.14–15.11) and multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (OR = 12.20, 95% CI: 6.07–24.54). Isoniazid mono or poly resistant tuberculosis patients were more likely to be from rural areas (OR = 2.05, 95% CI: 1.23–3.32) and current heavy alcohol drinkers compared to the drug-susceptible tuberculosis group. Multi drug-resistant tuberculosis patients were more likely to be non-adherent to tuberculosis treatment compared to drug-susceptible tuberculosis group (OR = 3.01, 95% CI: 1.56–5.82).ConclusionTo prevent and control isoniazid resistant tuberculosis among HIV-positive patients in Swaziland, the tuberculosis program should strengthen the use of rapid diagnostic tests, detect resistance early, promptly initiate supervised tuberculosis treatment and decentralize quality tuberculosis services to the rural areas. Adherence to tuberculosis treatment should be improved.

A nationwide survey on involvement of clinical microbiologists in antibiotic stewardship programmes in large French hospitals.

Antibiotic stewardship programmes (ASP) are essential to tackle antibiotic resistance. Clinical microbiologists (CMs) play a key role in these programmes; however, few studies describe their actual involvement. Our objective was to explore CMs' involvement in French hospital ASP. In 2018, we conducted a survey among CMs working in large public French hospitals (600 acute care beds or more). The questionnaire focused on the following topics: microbiology department's characteristics, hospital ASP, and CMs' involvement in this programme, including their use of rapid diagnostic tests (RDT). Fifty/74 CMs answered (response rate 68%), with 68% working in a teaching hospital. CMs were leading the ASP in 6% of cases, and 57% of hospitals had a multidisciplinary antibiotic stewardship team. Most microbiology departments (92%) were using specific PCR, processed 24/7 in 74% of hospitals. More than half (58%) were using syndromic panel-based testing, 94% mass spectrometry, and 96% immunochromatographic/colorimetric RDT. Blood cultures were processed 24/7 in 44% of hospitals. CMs were involved in this. Finally, 42% of CMs wished to be more involved in their hospital's ASP, the most frequently reported barrier being lack of time (36%). CMs should be more involved in ASP. RDT are widely used, but not implemented in an optimal way.

Seroepidemiology of dengue virus infection among adults during the ending phase of a severe dengue epidemic in southern Taiwan, 2015

BackgroundA severe dengue epidemic occurred in 2015 which resulted in over 22,000 laboratory-confirmed cases. A cross-sectional seroprevalence study was conducted during the ending phase of this epidemic to evaluate the true incidence of dengue virus (DENV) infection and the level of herd immunity.MethodsAdult residents in three administrative districts with high dengue incidence were recruited; workers in two districts with intermediate dengue incidence were also recruited for comparison. DENV-specific IgM and IgG were tested using commercial enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. DENV RNA was detected using commercial quantitative real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction assay. Univariate and multivariate logistic regressions were performed to identify risk factors for recent and past DENV infection.ResultsThe overall seroprevalence of anti-DENV IgM and IgG in 1391 participants was 6.8 and 17.4%, respectively. The risk of recent DENV infection increased with age, with the elderly having the highest risk of infection. Living in areas with high incidence of reported dengue cases and having family members being diagnosed with dengue in 2015 were also independent risk factors for recent DENV infection. One sample was found to have asymptomatic viremia with viral load as high as 105 PFU/ml.ConclusionsComparing the seroprevalence of anti-DENV IgM with the incidence of reported dengue cases in 2015, we estimated that 1 out of 3.7 dengue infections were reported to the surveillance system; widespread use of rapid diagnostic tests might contribute to this high reporting rate. The results also indicate that the overall herd immunity remains low and the current approved Dengvaxia® is not quite suitable for vaccination in Taiwan.

Parasite-based confirmation of malaria with rapid diagnostic tests: Challenges and Advantages

The key to effective case management of malaria is prompt and accurate diagnosis of malaria which is necessary to prevent morbidity and mortality. Accurate and practical malaria diagnostic such as immunochromatographic rapid diagnostic test can avert unnecessary treatments and save lives. Malaria presents a diagnostic challenge in most tropical countries. The urgency and importance of obtaining results quickly from the examination of blood samples from patient with suspected malaria is possible with the introduction of rapid malaria diagnostic test. Rapid diagnostic tests are useful in guiding therapeutic intervention, can be accessible to rural and urban populations, easy to perform and to interpret, affordable, requires no sophicated equipment and prompt treatment of malaria. The use of rapid diagnostic test in the case management of malaria has a lot of challenges which includes: persistent of histidine rich protein 2 in circulation after therapy and parasite death, effect of genetic diversity, lack of quality control on microscopy examination, poor transportation and storage condition, poor regulatory mechanism, lot-to-lot variation, parasite density and lack of extensive training prior to the use of rapid diagnostic test and supervision.

Malaria testing and treatment knowledge among selected rural patent and proprietary medicine vendors (PPMV) in Nigeria

BackgroundMalaria is a leading cause of illness and death in Nigeria, but access of poor people to quality anti-malarial services remains low especially in the rural areas. Patent and proprietary medicine vendors (PPMVs) provide the majority of malaria treatment in rural areas, but little is known about their knowledge of malaria testing and treatment of uncomplicated malaria as recommended in the 2011 National Malaria Control Programme policy.MethodsA cross-sectional survey was conducted in two purposively selected states (Oyo and Bayelsa) in Nigeria with each state representing a different geographic and linguistic–ethnic region in the southern part of the country. Two rural LGAs were randomly selected from each state and data were collected from 160 randomly selected PPMVS (40 per LGA) using a structured questionnaire. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics.ResultsThe 2011 National Policy on Malaria Diagnosis and Treatment is mostly unknown to PPMVs. Although most PPMVs (89%) knew that artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) is recommended in the national policy, 91% also thought non-ACT were endorsed. The proportion of PPMVs who stated they would treat a malaria case with an artemisinin-based combination at the correct dose was 33% for a child under five, 47% for an adult male and 14% for a pregnant woman in her second trimester. The proportion of PPMVs who reported they would diagnose a case of malaria prior to treatment using a malaria rapid diagnostic test (RDT) kit was 1.9% for children under five, 7.5% for adult males and 3.1% for pregnant women in their first trimester due to lack of knowledge. Almost two-thirds (65.6%) would correctly refer children with severe malaria to health facility.ConclusionsSubstantial knowledge gaps on the use of RDTs and treatment with artemisinin-based combinations exist among rural PPMVs. Given existing evidence regarding the effectiveness of private retail outlets in malaria case management, PPMVs should be provided with competency-based training and supervision to improve the quality of care they provide.

Multicentre randomised controlled trial to investigate usefulness of the rapid diagnostic βLACTA test performed directly on bacterial cell pellets from respiratory, urinary or blood samples for the early de-escalation of carbapenems in septic intensive care unit patients: the BLUE-CarbA protocol

IntroductionThe dramatic increase of the incidence of infections caused by extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (ESBL-PE) has led to an increase of 50% of carbapenem consumption all around Europe in only 5...

The effect of malaria rapid diagnostic tests results on antimicrobial prescription practices of health care workers in Burkina Faso

BackgroundMalaria rapid diagnostic tests (RDT) are widely used in endemic areas in order to comply with the recommendation that malaria treatment should only be given after the clinical diagnosis has been confirmed by RDT or microscopy. However, the overestimation of malaria infection with the use of PfHRP2 based RDT, makes the management of febrile illnesses more challenging. This study aimed to assess the effect of the use of malaria RDT on antimicrobial prescription practices.MethodsA prospective study was conducted among febrile children under-5 years of age attending four health facilities and the referral hospital in the Nanoro Health District (Burkina Faso). To assess the effect of malaria RDT testing on the prescriptions of antimicrobials in febrile children, the initial diagnosis and antimicrobial prescriptions following a malaria RDT testing were recorded. The necessity of these prescriptions was subsequently checked by assessing the actual cause of fever by expert malaria microscopy and a microbiology analysis of blood, urine, stool and nasopharynx swabs that were collected from febrile cases to determine the actual cause of the fever episode.ResultsMalaria was diagnosed by nurses, who are the primary health care providers, with a malaria RDT in 72.7% (798/1098) of febrile children, but only 53.7% (589/1097) cases could be confirmed by expert microscopy. Health care workers were likely to prescribe antimalarials to malaria positive RDT compared to malaria negative RDT (RR = 7.74, p = 0.00001). Malaria negative RDT result had a significant influence on the antibiotic prescriptions (RR = 3.57, p = 0.0001). The risk of prescribing antimicrobials was higher in health facility level compared to referral hospital. By cross-checking of laboratory findings to antimicrobial prescriptions, an important part of children with positive bacterial infection have received antibiotic prescriptions although the majority without any infection have also received antibiotics.ConclusionDespite the good attitude of health care workers to adhere to diagnostic test results, antimalarials and antibiotics remain inappropriate prescribed to febrile children. The low specificity of malaria RDT used could be an important cause of these practices.

Collaborative intelligence and gamification for on-line malaria species differentiation

BackgroundCurrent World Health Organization recommendations for the management of malaria include the need for a parasitological confirmation prior to triggering appropriate treatment. The use of rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) for malaria has contributed to a better infection recognition and a more targeted treatment. Nevertheless, low-density infections and parasites that fail to produce HRP2 can cause false-negative RDT results. Microscopy has traditionally been the methodology most commonly used to quantify malaria and characterize the infecting species, but the wider use of this technique remains challenging, as it requires trained personnel and processing capacity.ObjectiveIn this study, the feasibility of an on-line system for remote malaria species identification and differentiation has been investigated by crowdsourcing the analysis of digitalized infected thin blood smears by non-expert observers using a mobile app.MethodsAn on-line videogame in which players learned how to differentiate the young trophozoite stage of the five Plasmodium species has been designed. Images were digitalized with a smartphone camera adapted to the ocular of a conventional light microscope. Images from infected red blood cells were cropped and puzzled into an on-line game. During the game, players had to decide the malaria species (Plasmodium falciparum, Plasmodium malariae, Plasmodium vivax, Plasmodium ovale, Plasmodium knowlesi) of the infected cells that were shown in the screen. After 2 months, each player’s decisions were analysed individually and collectively.ResultsOn-line volunteers playing the game made more than 500,000 assessments for species differentiation. Statistically, when the choice of several players was combined (n > 25), they were able to significantly discriminate Plasmodium species, reaching a level of accuracy of 99% for all species combinations, except for P. knowlesi (80%). Non-expert decisions on which Plasmodium species was shown in the screen were made in less than 3 s.ConclusionThese findings show that it is possible to train malaria-naïve non-experts to identify and differentiate malaria species in digitalized thin blood samples. Although the accuracy of a single player is not perfect, the combination of the responses of multiple casual gamers can achieve an accuracy that is within the range of the diagnostic accuracy made by a trained microscopist.

Case Report: Three's a crowd: a case report examining the diagnostic and pharmacokinetic challenges in HIV-tuberculous meningitis-malaria co-infection.

In 2016, 10.4 million cases of tuberculosis (TB) were reported globally. Malaria also continues to be a global public health threat. Due to marked epidemiological overlap in the global burden of TB and malaria, co-infection does occur. An HIV-infected, 32-year-old male presented with a two-week history of headache with fevers to Mulago National Referral Hospital, Uganda. Five months prior, he was diagnosed with pulmonary TB. He endorsed poor adherence to anti-tuberculous medications. Mycobacterium tuberculosis in CSF was confirmed on Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra. On day 2, he was initiated on dexamethasone at 0.4mg/kg/day and induction TB-medications were re-commenced (rifampicin, isoniazid, ethambutol, pyrazinamide) for TBM. He continued to spike high-grade fevers, a peripheral blood smear showed P. falciparum parasites despite a negative malaria rapid diagnostic test (RDT). He received three doses of IV artesunate and then completed 3 days of oral artemether/lumefantrine. To our knowledge this is the first published case of HIV-TBM-malaria co-infection. TBM/malaria co-infection poses a number of management challenges. Due to potential overlap in symptoms between TBM and malaria, it is important to remain vigilant for co-infection. Access to accurate parasitological diagnostics is essential, as RDT use continues to expand, it is essential that clinicians are aware of the potential for false negative results. Anti-malarial therapeutic options are limited due to important drug-drug interactions (DDIs). Rifampicin is a potent enzyme inducer of several hepatic cytochrome P450 enzymes, this induction results in reduced plasma concentrations of several anti-malarial medications. Despite recognition of potential DDIs between rifampicin and artemisinin compounds, and rifampicin and quinine, no treatment guidelines currently exist for managing patients with co-infection. There is both an urgent need for the development of new anti-malarial drugs which do not interact with rifampicin and for pharmacokinetic studies to guide dose modification of existing anti-malarial drugs to inform clinical practice guidelines.

Interplay between Rapid Diagnostic Tests and Antimicrobial Stewardship Programs among Patients with Bloodstream and Other Severe Infections.

Antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs) aim to provide optimal antimicrobial therapy to patients quickly to improve the likelihood of overcoming infection while reducing the risk of adverse effects. Rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) for infectious diseases have become an integral tool for ASPs to achieve these aims. This review explored the demonstrated clinical value of longer-standing technologies and implications of newer RDTs from an antimicrobial stewardship perspective. Based on available literature, the focus was on the use of RDTs in bloodstream infections (BSIs), particularly those that perform organism identification and genotypic resistance detection, phenotypic susceptibility testing, and direct specimen testing. Clinical implications of rapid testing among respiratory, central nervous system, and gastrointestinal infections are also reviewed. Coupling RDTs with ASPs facilitates the appropriate and timely use of test results, translating into improved patient outcomes through optimization of antimicrobial use. These benefits are best demonstrated in the use of RDT in BSIs. Rapid phenotypic susceptibility testing offers the potential for early pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic optimization, and direct specimen testing on blood may allow ASPs to initiate appropriate therapy and/or tailor empiric therapy even sooner than other RDTs. RDTs for respiratory, central nervous system, and gastrointestinal illnesses have also shown significant promise, although more outcome studies are needed to evaluate their full impact.

Comparison of Malaria Rapid Diagnostic Test Kit and Microscopy

Malaria is the most common single diagnosis made in many countries in Africa. Microscopy is the gold standard for laboratory diagnosis of malaria parasite, but it requires adequate training and the time to get results is longer than that for Rapid Diagnostic Tests (RDTs). Use of RDTs is an alternative diagnostic method. This method is quick and easy to carry out. This study examined 412 blood samples of patients who met the study inclusion criteria from the health centres. All of the samples obtained were tested by SD Bioline malaria Ag P.f test commonly available in Nigeria and parasite count was done from thick film prepared. The results obtained were presented as a proportion positive in comparison to the total number of participants enrolled. Of the 412 enrollees, 284 were tested positive with malaria using the RDT, 400 were tested positive with microscopy and 12 were negative using microscopy and RDT. This study confirms the superior sensitivity of microscopy to RDTs in diagnosis of malaria. Although RDTs are very useful for quick diagnosis of malaria, particularly in areas where access to the use of microscopy is not available, the possibility of a low performance by RDTs in malaria diagnosis should be emphasized on health practitioners and microcopy should be encouraged as much as possible.

1812. Impact of Rapid Identification of Blood Cultures With Antimicrobial Stewardship at Three Community Hospitals Within a Health System

BackgroundThe use of rapid diagnostic tests (RDT) in microbiology decreases time to pathogen identification (ID). When coupled with an Antimicrobial Stewardship Program (ASP), time to optimal antibiotics can be significantly reduced. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of Verigene® Gram-Positive Blood Culture Test (BC-GP) and Gram-Negative Blood Culture Test (BC-GN) implementation with an ASP at three community hospitals within a health system with centralized microbiology services.MethodsA retrospective analysis was conducted to compare time to targeted antibiotics for treatment of bloodstream infections (BSI) before and after implementation of Verigene®. Patients were included with a positive blood culture for organisms detectable by Verigene BC-GP and BC-GN during September 2016 (pre-implementation group) and September 2017 (post-implementation group). Patients were excluded if positive blood culture had more than one organism, patient was actively being treated for an infection unrelated to blood culture or blood culture results were available after patient expired, was discharged or transferred. Targeted antibiotic therapy was defined as antibiotic therapy tailored toward pathogen based on ID and sensitivities. Each ASP pharmacist received Verigene® notifications in real-time. Secondary endpoints were in-hospital mortality, hospital length of stay (LOS), and days of vancomycin therapy.ResultsA total of 93 patients were included in the final analysis with 42 patients in pre- group and 51 in post-group. Patients achieving targeted therapy during their hospital stay was 38 of 42 (90%) in the pre-group and 47 of 51 (92%) in the post-group. Of those who achieved targeted therapy, time to targeted therapy was 78.4 hours vs. 43.1 hours in pre-group vs. post-group, respectively (P < 0.001). No significant difference was detected for in-hospital mortality or hospital LOS. Length of vancomycin therapy was decreased from 85.8 hours to 48.6 hours in post-group (P < 0.001).ConclusionImplementation of RDT in three community hospitals with a centralized microbiology laboratory resulted in a significantly improved time to targeted antibiotics in patients with BSI when combined with ASP pharmacist real-time notification.Disclosures All authors: No reported disclosures.

Acceptability and feasibility of dual HIV and syphilis point-of-care testing for early detection of infection among pregnant women in China: a prospective study

ObjectiveTo assess the feasibility and acceptability of using WHO prequalified combined dual HIV/syphilis rapid diagnostic tests (RDT) for same-day results in antenatal care (ANC) clinics.MethodsThis is a pragmatic implementation study...