Bartonella spp. Infections Identified by Molecular Methods, United States

Area of Science:

• Medical Microbiology
• Infectious Diseases
• Molecular Diagnostics

Background:

• Bartonella spp. infections pose diagnostic challenges with traditional culture and serology methods.
• Rapid and accurate identification is essential for effective patient management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of molecular diagnostic methods for identifying Bartonella spp. in clinical specimens.
• To determine the prevalence of different Bartonella species in a US patient cohort.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of clinical test results from PCR targeting bacterial 16S rRNA hypervariable V1-V2 regions.
• Parallel PCR targeting the Bartonella-specific ribC gene was also employed.
• Identification of Bartonella species in 430 clinical specimens from 420 patients.

Main Results:

• Bartonella spp. were identified in 430 clinical specimens.
• Bartonella henselae (77%) and B. quintana (13%) were the most prevalent species.
• B. quintana was predominant in cardiac specimens (83%), while B. henselae was common in lymph node specimens (34%).
• Novel or uncommon Bartonella species were detected in 9 patients.

Conclusions:

• Molecular diagnostic testing offers a rapid and effective means for identifying Bartonella spp. infections.
• This method is particularly valuable for diagnosing culture-negative endocarditis and lymphadenitis.
• The study highlights the utility of molecular diagnostics for detecting both common and rare Bartonella species.