This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Copyright Information
Right arrow Books from ASM Press
Right arrow MicrobeWorld
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Lievano, F. A.
Right arrow Articles by Smith, P. F.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Lievano, F. A.
Right arrow Articles by Smith, P. F.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Journal of Clinical Microbiology, August 2002, p. 2801-2805, Vol. 40, No. 8
0095-1137/02/$04.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/JCM.40.8.2801-2805.2002
Copyright © 2002, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Issues Associated with and Recommendations for Using PCR To Detect Outbreaks of Pertussis

Fabio A. Lievano,1,2* Meredith A. Reynolds,1,3 Alfred L. Waring,4 Joel Ackelsberg,1,5 Kristine M. Bisgard,2 Gary N. Sanden,6 Dalya Guris,2 Anne Golaz,2 Dianna J. Bopp,4 Ronald J. Limberger,4 and Perry F. Smith5,7

Epidemic Intelligence Service, Epidemiology Program Office,1 Epidemiology and Surveillance Division, National Immunization Program,2 National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion,3 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, and Wadsworth Center,4 and Division of Epidemiology,5 Division of Bacterial and Mycotic Diseases,National Center for Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia,6 New York State Department of Health, and Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, State University of New York at Albany7

Received 7 February 2002/ Returned for modification 22 March 2002/ Accepted 29 May 2002

Two outbreaks of respiratory tract illness associated with prolonged cough occurring in 1998 and 1999 in New York State were investigated. A PCR test for Bordetella pertussis was primarily used by a private laboratory to confirm 680 pertussis cases. Several clinical specimens had positive culture results for B. pertussis during both outbreaks, which confirmed that B. pertussis was circulating during the outbreaks. However, testing by the New York State Department of Health reference laboratory suggested that some of the PCR results may have been falsely positive. In addition, features of the outbreak that suggested that B. pertussis may not have been the primary agent of infection included a low attack rate among incompletely vaccinated children and a significant amount of illness among patients testing PCR negative for B. pertussis. These investigations highlight the importance of appropriate clinical laboratory quality assurance programs, of the limitations of the PCR test, and of interpreting laboratory results in context of clinical disease.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: 1600 Clifton Rd. NE, Mailstop E-05, Atlanta, GA 30333. Phone: (404) 639 8904. Fax: (404) 639 8573. E-mail: flievano{at}cdc.gov.

Journal of Clinical Microbiology, August 2002, p. 2801-2805, Vol. 40, No. 8
0095-1137/02/$04.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/JCM.40.8.2801-2805.2002
Copyright © 2002, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Probert, W. S., Ely, J., Schrader, K., Atwell, J., Nossoff, A., Kwan, S. (2008). Identification and Evaluation of New Target Sequences for Specific Detection of Bordetella pertussis by Real-Time PCR. J. Clin. Microbiol. 46: 3228-3231 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Sandora, T. J., Gidengil, C. A., Lee, G. M. (2008). Pertussis Vaccination for Health Care Workers. Clin. Microbiol. Rev. 21: 426-434 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Baughman, A. L., Bisgard, K. M., Cortese, M. M., Thompson, W. W., Sanden, G. N., Strebel, P. M. (2008). Utility of Composite Reference Standards and Latent Class Analysis in Evaluating the Clinical Accuracy of Diagnostic Tests for Pertussis. CVI 15: 106-114 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Sotir, M. J., Cappozzo, D. L., Warshauer, D. M., Schmidt, C. E., Monson, T. A., Berg, J. L., Zastrow, J. A., Gabor, G. W., Davis, J. P. (2008). A Countywide Outbreak of Pertussis: Initial Transmission in a High School Weight Room With Subsequent Substantial Impact on Adolescents and Adults. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 162: 79-85 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • (2007). Outbreaks of Respiratory Illness Mistakenly Attributed to Pertussis New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Tennessee, 2004-2006. JAMA 298: 1999-2002 [Full Text]  
  • Cornia, P. B., Lipsky, B. A., Saint, S., Gonzales, R. (2007). Nothing to Cough At -- A 73-year-old man presented to the emergency department with a 4-day history of nonproductive cough that worsened at night. NEJM 357: 1432-1437 [Full Text]  
  • Qin, X., Galanakis, E., Martin, E. T., Englund, J. A. (2007). Multitarget PCR for Diagnosis of Pertussis and Its Clinical Implications. J. Clin. Microbiol. 45: 506-511 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Halperin, S. A. (2007). The Control of Pertussis -- 2007 and Beyond. NEJM 356: 110-113 [Full Text]  
  • Hitchcock, W. P. (2006). Rationale for Use of Tdap Booster Vaccines for Adolescent Immunization: Overview of Efficacy, Safety, and Clinical Use. CLIN PEDIATR 45: 785-794 [Abstract]  
  • Singh, M., Lingappan, K. (2006). Whooping cough: the current scene.. Chest 130: 1547-1553 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • (2006). Pertussis--United States, 2001-2003. JAMA 295: 488-490 [Full Text]  
  • Hewlett, E. L., Edwards, K. M. (2005). Pertussis -- Not Just for Kids. NEJM 352: 1215-1222 [Full Text]  
  • Tozzi, A. E., Pastore Celentano, L., Ciofi degli Atti, M. L., Salmaso, S. (2005). Diagnosis and management of pertussis. CMAJ 172: 509-515 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Muyldermans, G., Soetens, O., Antoine, M., Bruisten, S., Vincart, B., Doucet-Populaire, F., Fry, N. K., Olcen, P., Scheftel, J. M., Senterre, J. M., van der Zee, A., Riffelmann, M., Pierard, D., Lauwers, S. (2005). External Quality Assessment for Molecular Detection of Bordetella pertussis in European Laboratories. J. Clin. Microbiol. 43: 30-35 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Baughman, A. L., Bisgard, K. M., Edwards, K. M., Guris, D., Decker, M. D., Holland, K., Meade, B. D., Lynn, F. (2004). Establishment of Diagnostic Cutoff Points for Levels of Serum Antibodies to Pertussis Toxin, Filamentous Hemagglutinin, and Fimbriae in Adolescents and Adults in the United States. CVI 11: 1045-1053 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • (2004). School-Associated Pertussis Outbreak--Yavapai County, Arizona, September 2002-February 2003. JAMA 291: 1952-1954 [Full Text]  
  • Wheeler, J. G., Tran, T. C., North, P., Beavers-May, T., Schutze, G. E., Snow, S. L. (2004). Barriers to Public Health Management of a Pertussis Outbreak in Arkansas. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 158: 146-152 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Templeton, K. E., Scheltinga, S. A., van der Zee, A., Diederen, B. M. W., Kruijssen, A. M., Goossens, H., Kuijper, E., Claas, E. C. J. (2003). Evaluation of Real-Time PCR for Detection of and Discrimination between Bordetella pertussis, Bordetella parapertussis, and Bordetella holmesii for Clinical Diagnosis. J. Clin. Microbiol. 41: 4121-4126 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


Copyright © 2009 by the American Society for Microbiology.   For an alternate route to Journals.ASM.org, visit: http://intl-journals.asm.org | More Info»