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. 1993 Aug;31(8):2218-21.
doi: 10.1128/jcm.31.8.2218-2221.1993.

Prospective application of reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction for diagnosing influenza infections in respiratory samples from a children's hospital

E C Claas  1 , A J van Milaan, M J Sprenger, M Ruiten-Stuiver, G I Arron, P H Rothbarth, N Masurel
Affiliations

Prospective application of reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction for diagnosing influenza infections in respiratory samples from a children's hospital

E C Claas et al. J Clin Microbiol. 1993 Aug.

Abstract

A prospective clinical evaluation of the reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RNA PCR) for detection of influenza viruses was carried out with specimens from 342 patients of a children's hospital in The Netherlands. The RNA PCR, carried out directly on the specimens without an organic extraction, showed a sensitivity and specificity which are superior to those of direct immunofluorescence and comparable to those of cell culture combined with immunofluorescence (culture/IF). Negative results can be obtained within 2 days by the RNA PCR but may take up to 14 days by culture/IF. Because culturing is the standard technique for the detection of respiratory viruses, at this moment there are no strong arguments to replace culture/IF with RNA PCR for the detection of influenza A virus.

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