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Detecting Clostridioides (Clostridium) difficile using canine teams: What does the nose know?
M K Charles1, Y Wang2, T Zurberg3
1Division of Medical Microbiology and Infection Prevention, Vancouver Coastal Health and University of British Columbia Faculty of Medicine, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Infection Prevention in Practice
|August 9, 2021
Summary
Trained canines can detect Clostridioides (Clostridium) difficile (CD) with high accuracy. However, dogs struggled to differentiate CD from similar bacteria, highlighting the need for specialized training and context for effective detection programs.
Area of Science:
- Veterinary Medicine
- Microbiology
- Animal Behavior
Background:
- Trained canines demonstrate potential for detecting Clostridioides (Clostridium) difficile (CD) in various environments.
- The specific odorant cues utilized by canines for CD detection remain incompletely understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the inter-rater reliability of two canine detection teams in distinguishing between CD toxin-positive and -negative scent pads.
- To evaluate canine ability to discriminate between different clostridial strains based on odor.
Main Methods:
- Two canine teams underwent weekly testing over six months to detect and differentiate CD-positive and -negative odors.
- Scent pads were impregnated with odors from reference and clinical isolates of CD and other clostridial species to assess discrimination capabilities.
Main Results:
- Canine teams achieved high overall sensitivity (94.7% and 86.8%) and specificity (96.9% and 98.7%).
- Excellent inter-rater reliability was observed (Cohen's kappa = 0.87).
- Teams correctly identified 96.3% of CD isolates but only 46.7% of closely related species, indicating challenges in discrimination.
Conclusions:
- Canine teams demonstrated robust inter-rater reliability for detecting CD, including toxin-producing and non-toxin-producing strains.
- Discrimination between CD and closely related clostridial species presented a challenge for the canine teams.
- The findings support the development of canine scent detection programs for CD, emphasizing the critical need for proper training and contextual application.
