Utility of clinical and laboratory data to estimate the probability of bacterial diarrhea diagnosed by stool multiplex Polymerase Chain Reaction assay in a pediatric population

Abstract

Aims: we estimated the probability of a positive result for the most common bacterial causal agents of diarrhea, such as Campylobacter spp., Salmonella spp., Shigella/Enteroinvasive Escherichia coli, Yersinia enterocolitica or Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli by a stool multiplex Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) assay in a pediatric population evaluated at the Pediatric and Pediatric Emergency Unit, Children Hospital of the Azienda Ospedaliera SS. Antonio e Biagio e Cesare Arrigo, Alessandria, Italy, during the period April 2022 - July 2023. Methods: we analyzed the clinical data collected by the Pediatrician on the stool sample request form along with complete blood count and C-Reactive Protein (CRP). Results: in our case series, the presence of blood/mucus in stool along with an increased value of CRP are independently associated with a positive result diagnosed by molecular method for bacterial diarrhea caused by the aforementioned pathogens. Conclusions: the results proposed in this paper can be of help in hospital settings without the availability of a stool multiplex PCR assay to estimate the probability of bacterial diarrhea in a pediatric patient.