EVALUATION OF BIOFIRE FILMARRAY PNEUMONIA PANEL IN DIAGNOSIS OF PNEUMONIA IN PEDIATRIC PATIENTS IN INTENSIVE CARE UNIT IN COMPARISON TO VITEK 2 COMPACT SYSTEM AND ROUTINE CULTURE METHODS

Abstract

Lower respiratory tract infections can result from a variety of pathogens. The expeditious and precise identification of these microorganisms is crucial for determining the most suitable antimicrobial regimen. This study tried to identify microbiological causes of hospital-acquired and ventilator-associated pneumonia by the syndromic multiplex PCR “BioFire FilmArray Pneumonia Plus panel (FA-PP)” and to correlate the results with the findings obtained by routine culture methods. This study was conducted on 72 bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) samples. The result revealed that bacterial and viral infections were common causes of nosocomial pneumonia among pediatric patients in the intensive care unit, the most commonly detected bacteria was Klebsiella pneumoniae, while the most commonly detected virus was rhinovirus. A high percentage of antibiotic resistance was reported, the most prevalent resistant genes in our study were CTX-M and NDM genes. There was substantial significant agreement between the two methods in the detection of bacteria and antibiotic resistance. FilmArray Pneumonia Plus panel presents a rapid and sensitive diagnostic approach for lower respiratory tract infections, it is recommended to establish clinical correlation for a comprehensive understanding of its significance, particularly in the interpretation of multiple pathogens and the detection of genes associated with antimicrobial resistance