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Detection of Invasive Pulmonary Aspergillosis in Haematological Malignancy Patients by using Lateral-flow Technology
08:01

Detection of Invasive Pulmonary Aspergillosis in Haematological Malignancy Patients by using Lateral-flow Technology

Published on: March 22, 2012

False-positive galactomannan platelia Aspergillus test results for patients receiving piperacillin-tazobactam

Claudio Viscoli1, Marco Machetti, Paola Cappellano

  • 1Infectious Disease Unit, National Institute for Cancer Research and University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy. viscolic@unige.it

Clinical Infectious Diseases : an Official Publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America
|March 5, 2004
PubMed

Insights

A rise in positive Aspergillus tests in bone marrow transplant patients was linked to piperacillin-tazobactam (PT). Further investigation revealed contamination in several PT batches, suggesting a potential source of false positives.

Area of Science:

  • Medical Mycology
  • Clinical Microbiology
  • Hematology

Background:

  • The Platelia Aspergillus (PA) test is crucial for diagnosing invasive aspergillosis in immunocompromised patients.
  • An increase in PA test positivity was observed at a bone marrow transplantation center.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the reasons behind the increased rate of positive Platelia Aspergillus test results.
  • To determine the association between piperacillin-tazobactam administration and PA test positivity.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective analysis of PA test results in bone marrow transplant patients.
  • Statistical analysis to assess the association between piperacillin-tazobactam and PA positivity.
  • Testing of piperacillin-tazobactam batches for Aspergillus contamination.

Main Results:

  • PA test positivity increased from 10% to 36% within a specific period.
  • Piperacillin-tazobactam (PT) administration was significantly associated with positive PA test results (74% vs. 11%).
  • 12 out of 15 tested PT batches showed positive results for Aspergillus.

Conclusions:

  • Piperacillin-tazobactam administration is strongly associated with false-positive Platelia Aspergillus test results.
  • Contamination within piperacillin-tazobactam batches is a likely cause of the observed increase in PA positivity.
  • Clinical laboratories and transplant centers should be aware of this potential issue when interpreting PA test results in patients receiving PT.

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