title: Detection of Vancomycin Resistant Enterococci from Rectal Swab Samples by Becton-Dickinson GeneOhm VanR assay and Culture at ICU of a Tertiary Care Center in Turkey.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Vancomycin resistance is due to change in ligase enzyme that destroys the binding of the drug. The gold standard is culture; but now molecular methods have also been developed. The aim was to detect the VRE rate at ICUs by culture and BD GeneOhm™ VanR and compare the results of both assays.
  
  
  METHODS
  135 perianal swabs were taken from the patients at ICUs between January 1(st) 2009 and April 30(th) 2009. Samples were identified by conventional methods and BD GeneOhm VanR assay.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In newborn ICU, 41 patients (74.6%) were negative by both methods. Two (3.6%) were positive by both methods. Twelve (21.8%) of them were culture negative and PCR positive. In adult ICU, 73 (91.3%) patients were negative by both methods. Seven patients (8.8%) were positive by molecular method only.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study showed low VRE positivity due to factors like inhibition in PCR or culture negativity due low inoculum for bacterial growth. Early detection of VRE is an important issue especially in ICUs and molecular techniques are important tools; but against all, we still need to confirm this method with culture based techniques and in order to do this further studies with higher number of patients with VRE colonisation are required.
authors.affiliation: Ayhan Gozaydin, Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology Specialist, Department of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology, Tepecik Education and Research Hospital, Izmir, Turkey.
authors.forename: Ayhan
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gozaydin
authors.affiliation: Sukran Kose, Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology Specialist, Department of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology, Tepecik Education and Research Hospital, Izmir, Turkey.
authors.forename: Sukran
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kose
authors.affiliation: Gulfem Ece, Clinical Microbiology Specialist, Department of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology, Tepecik Education and Research Hospital, Izmir, Turkey.
authors.forename: Gulfem
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ece
authors.affiliation: Gursel Ersan, Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology Specialist, Department of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology, Tepecik Education and Research Hospital, Izmir, Turkey.
authors.forename: Gursel
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ersan
authors.affiliation: Mustafa Gonullu, Anesthesiology and Reanimation Specialist, Department of Anesthesiology and Reanimation, Tepecik Education and Research Hospital, Izmir, Turkey.
authors.forename: Mustafa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gonullu
keywords: Conventional methods; Enterococci; Molecular methods; Vancomycin