Dr Kevin O'Donnell wrote:
>> On 19 Jan 96 at 1:18, Kenneth Bromberg, MD wrote:
>> > The Journal of Clinical Micro is full of comparisons about these
> > tests. PCR is OK for it as well but I would consider it overkill.
>> Are there many cases where PCR is not overkill? Or to put the
> question another way, aside from screening for mutations, for which
> applications in the clinical or plant pathology fields is PCR now the
> method of choice?
>> Kevin
>> Dr Kevin O'Donnell "Work as if you were in the early days
> Diagnostics and Molecular Biology of a better nation"
> SASA - Alasdair Gray
> EdinburghFor B. pertussis diagnosis, PCR (with all of the usual limitations) is
probably the method of choice. We are working on our data for DFA and
PCR but all of them are much better than culture which is very specific
but not that sensitive. Another area would be bugs that are hard to
grow like Bartonella or H. ducreyi. TB also ...I know that there was a
comparison in the JCM that suggested a dart board might be a better test
but we await methods to control contamination.
Ken Bromberg, MD
Peds ID, Kings County Hospital
Everyone was born in Brooklyn
