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Value of Gram's stain of cell block material from peritoneal fluid in bacterial peritonitis
1Department of Pathology, Brigham & Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA.
Objective:
To determine the value of Gram's stain of cell blocks of peritoneal fluid for the diagnosis of bacterial peritonitis.
Study Design:
The results of Gram's stain of 12 cases of culture-positive, frank bacterial peritonitis (FBP) and 11 cases of culture-positive spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP) were compared with 6 cases of culture-negative frank sterile peritonitis and 21 cases of culture-negative spontaneous sterile peritonitis.
Results:
For both FBP and SBP, Gram's stain had low sensitivity (8% and 9%). Overall, the positive predictive value of Gram's stain for peritonitis was 33%. Hematoxylin-eosin (HE) was just as sensitive but had a positive predictive value of 100%.
Conclusion:
In cell block material of peritoneal fluid, Gram's stain is of little value except to further characterize organisms seen on HE.