DIAGNOSIS OF BACTERIAL-MENINGITIS AND SEPTICEMIA BY SERUM COUNTERIMMUNOELECTROPHORESIS

We compare the results obtained by counterimmunoelectrophoresis in sam ples of serum and cerebrospinal fluid with microbiologic methods for 3 ,298 patients suspected of bacterial meningitis and/or septicemia at I nstitute Adolfo Lutz, Sao Paulo, in a retrospective study of the perio d from July 1988 to July 1994. Of the 415 patients (12.6% of the total cases studied) who were positive by the serum test: only 249 (7.6% of the total cases studied) were also positive when cerebrospinal fluid was assayed. Thus, 40% of the positives (5.6% of the total) were ident ifiable by analysis of serum but not of cerebrospinal fluid. Neisseria meningitidis accounted for 77.7% (129) and Haemophilus influenzae for 22.3% (37) of the positive results obtained only when serum was exami ned. These data show that although sensitivity and specificity of seru m counterimmunoelectrophoresis are relatively low compared to cerebros pinal fluid counterimmunoelectrophoresis: the serum test is necessary to complement cerebrospinal fluid counterimmunoelectrophoresis data.