Noninvasive Diagnosis of Pulmonary Infection in Pediatric Bone Marrow
Transplant Patients Using Microbial Cell-Free DNA
Abstract
Pediatric hematopoietic stem cell transplant patients are highly immune
compromised with a significantly increased risk for severe pulmonary
infections. In these two case reports, we review the use of plasma
microbial cell-free DNA next generation sequencing, also known as the
Karius Test (KT), as a non-invasive diagnostic tool. These cases
illustrate how the KT can provide early species-level identification of
pathogens for patients that are either unable to tolerate sedated
bronchoscopy, or those with negative bronchoalveolar lavage due to heavy
antibiotic pre-treatment. These two clinical cases illustrate how use of
KT can reduce infection-related morbidity and mortality.