Diagnosis of neonatal sepsis using 16S rRNA polymerase chain reaction

The gold standard for detecting bacterial sepsis is blood culture. However, the sensitivity of blood culture is low and the results take 48-72 h. Molecular assays for the detection of bacterial DNA permit early detection of a bacterial cause as the turnaround time is 6-8 h. We undertook an evaluation of the performance of universal bacterial primer (16S rRNA) polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in the diagnosis of neonatal sepsis at a tertiary care medical college teaching hospital. 16S rRNA PCR was positive in all cases of blood culture proven sepsis. PCR revealed 95.6% sensitivity, 100% specificity, 100% positive predictive value and 91.2% negative predictive value and so appears to be a useful tool for the early diagnosis of bacterial neonatal sepsis.