title: Enhanced viral etiological diagnosis of respiratory system infection outbreaks by use of a multitarget nucleic acid amplification assay.
abstract: A study was undertaken to assess the utility of the xTAG respiratory viral panel (RVP) for enhanced laboratory investigation of respiratory outbreaks. Specimens (n = 1,108) from 244 suspected respiratory virus outbreaks in 2006 and 2007 in Alberta, Canada, were included in the study. Testing by direct fluorescent antigen detection (DFA) and various in-house nucleic acid amplification tests (NATs) for common respiratory viruses provided an etiological diagnosis in 177 outbreaks (72.5%), with 524 samples testing positive (47.3%) for a respiratory virus. Two hundred samples from 51 unresolved outbreaks were further tested by RVP retrospectively. Fifty-eight samples from 30 unresolved outbreaks had a respiratory virus detected by RVP (47 picornavirus-positive, 9 coronavirus-positive, and 2 influenza virus A-positive samples). Overall, detection of a viral etiological agent was achieved in 90.8% of outbreaks using a combination of DFA, NATs, and RVP. Use of RVP enhances the laboratory investigation of respiratory virus outbreaks and facilitates appropriate patient and outbreak management.
authors.affiliation: Provincial Laboratory for Public Health (Microbiology), 3030 Hospital Drive NW, Calgary, Alberta T2N 4W4, Canada. S.Wong@provlab.ab.ca
authors.forename: Sallene
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.forename: Kanti
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Pabbaraju
authors.forename: Bonita E
authors.initials: BE
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Julie D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Fox
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000416:Alberta; D000956:Antigens, Viral / Q000032:analysis; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008875:Middle Aged; D021141:Nucleic Acid Amplification Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D012137:Respiratory System / Q000821:virology; D012141:Respiratory Tract Infections / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000821:virology; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D014777:Virus Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000821:virology; D014780:Viruses / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D000956:Antigens, Viral