Bosch Healthcare Solutions Announces New Rapid Test for Bacterial Meningitis
Waiblingen, Germany – Bosch Healthcare Solutions (BHCS) has recently announced the development of a new PCR test, the Vivalytic Bacterial Meningitis, for its Vivalytic analysis platform. The test has the capability to detect six important bacterial meningitis pathogens in less than an hour using highly sensitive PCR technology. BHCS is expanding its test portfolio to cover an additional critical medical indication.
Dr. Stefan Zimmermann, Senior Physician at the Center for Infectious Diseases at Heidelberg University Hospital, stresses the importance of rapid and reliable pathogen detection for bacterial meningitis in order to reduce high morbidity and mortality rates. “Bacterial meningitis is an absolute medical emergency,” says Dr. Zimmermann. “To prevent death and permanent damage following meningitis, prompt and targeted antibiotic treatment in the hospital is crucial.”
The Vivalytic test is a PCR rapid test that specifically detects the six most common causes of bacterial meningitis in under an hour. This is in line with the current guideline for adults, which recommends starting antibiotic treatment within one to three hours of arrival at the emergency room. The Vivalytic Bacterial Meningitis test delivers reliable results within the required timeframe.
The test is suitable for all patients with suspected bacterial meningitis and can detect the following pathogens: Neisseria meningitidis, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, Streptococcus agalactiae, Escherichia coli, and Listeria monocytogenes. This covers the most important bacterial pathogens in all age groups on a single cartridge. Newborns and young infants are particularly at risk from Streptococcus agalactiae, but also from Escherichia coli and Listeria monocytogenes. Older infants, toddlers, and young adults can become infected with Neisseria meningitidis and Streptococcus pneumoniae, while elderly individuals are often affected by Streptococcus pneumoniae.
According to the guideline for testing antibiotic susceptibility, PCR tests should be supplemented by a cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) culture. After collecting the CSF, it is recommended to start antibiotic treatment immediately, possibly in combination with dexamethasone.
Meningitis is an inflammation of the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord, and the pathogens often enter the body through the respiratory tract and then spread via the bloodstream. The infection can also be transmitted from neighboring structures, such as in the case of inflammation of the middle ear or paranasal sinuses. Worldwide, 2.5 million people are affected every year, mainly in poorer regions, and more than half of the cases affect children under five years of age. The main symptoms include headaches, attention deficits, fever, and a stiff neck. The pathogens can be bacteria, viruses, fungi, or parasites, but bacterial meningitis is particularly worrying, with one in five cases leading to permanent complications such as hearing loss, brain damage, and seizures. Without immediate treatment, about half of those afflicted will die.
Thanks to the introduction of conjugate vaccines and improved medical care, the global mortality rate from bacterial meningitis has fallen from 32 percent before 1961 to 15 percent after 2010. Pneumococcal vaccines against various serotypes provide good protection against pneumococcal infection. In addition to antibiotics, doctors are increasingly prescribing anti-inflammatory therapies such as dexamethasone, which reduce mortality rates, hearing loss, and neurological complications.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has set itself the goal of eliminating bacterial meningitis worldwide by 2030, among other things by eliminating meningitis epidemics. “Rapid diagnosis using multiplex PCR tests could play a crucial role in this,” says Marc Meier, president of Bosch Healthcare Solutions. While PCR takes a day in the laboratory and culture confirmation requires two days, the Vivalytic Bacterial Meningitis test delivers results in less than an hour.
The Vivalytic system is intuitive to use and requires only a brief training session for medical staff. The collected sample is placed into a test cartridge, which already contains all necessary reagents. The cartridge is then inserted into the Vivalytic Analyser for automatic processing. The test result is shown on the display in under an hour. The fully automated workflow of the all-in-one platform minimizes the risk of infection for the user. Vivalytic Bacterial Meningitis enables reliable and easy-to-establish diagnostics, even at off-peak times at weekends and in the evenings. BHCS recently obtained CE certification for the Vivalytic Bacterial Meningitis-test. It is now available for order from distribution partners such as Randox Laboratories and R-Biopharm.
BHCS is a wholly owned subsidiary of Robert Bosch GmbH and was established in 2015 with the aim of developing products and services
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