Under the weather? A blood test can tell if antibiotics are needed

Dr. Ephraim Tsalik assesses Charles Watts for a respiratoryinfection in the ER at the Durham VA Medical Center. DURHAM, N.C. -- Researchers at Duke Health are fine-tuning a test that can determine whether a respiratory illness is caused by infection from a virus or bacteria so that antibiotics can be more precisely prescribed. The team of infectious disease and genomics experts at Duke has developed what they call gene signatures, patterns that reflect which of a patient’s genes are turned on or off, to indicate whether someone is fighting infection from a virus or bacteria. Results can be derived from a small sample of the patient’s blood.          The signatures were tested in an observational study described in the January 20 issue of Science Translational Medicine. They were found to be 87 percent accurate in classifying more than 300 patients with flu viruses, rhinovirus, several strep bacteria and other common infections, as well as showing when no infection was present.   With these findings, Duke researchers are a significant step closer to developing a rapid blood test that could be used in clinics to distinguish bacterial and viral infections and to guide appropriate treatment.   “A respiratory infection is one of the most common reasons people come to the doctor,” said lead author Ephraim L. Tsalik, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of medicine at Duke and emergency medicine provider at the Durham VA Medical Center. “We use a lot of info...
Source: DukeHealth.org: Duke Health Features - Category: Pediatrics Tags: Duke Medicine Source Type: news