Evidence map›Paper›PMID 30706296›Full record

ArticleIrish journal of medical science2019

The role of real-time PCR testing in the investigation of paediatric patients with community-onset osteomyelitis and septic arthritis.

Sadhbh O'Rourke, Mary Meehan, Désirée Bennett, Nicola O'Sullivan, Robert Cunney, Patrick Gavin, Roisin McNamara, Noelle Cassidy, Stephanie Ryan, Kathryn Harris and 1 more

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Article in Irish journal of medical science, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed
0.4field-weighted citation impact, top 36% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed, 7 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Review
  2. IDCases · 2026
    Article
  3. Article
  4. Systematic Review ofPediatric health, medicine and therapeutics · 2020
    Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.

Sadhbh O'RourkeDepartment of Clinical Microbiology, Temple Street Children's University Hospital, Dublin 1, Ireland. orourkemicro@gmail.com.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0723-1579
Mary MeehanIrish Meningitis and Sepsis Reference Laboratory, Temple Street Children's University Hospital, Dublin 1, Ireland.
Désirée BennettIrish Meningitis and Sepsis Reference Laboratory, Temple Street Children's University Hospital, Dublin 1, Ireland.
Nicola O'SullivanIrish Meningitis and Sepsis Reference Laboratory, Temple Street Children's University Hospital, Dublin 1, Ireland.
Robert CunneyIrish Meningitis and Sepsis Reference Laboratory, Temple Street Children's University Hospital, Dublin 1, Ireland.
Patrick GavinDepartment of Infectious Diseases, Temple Street Children's University Hospital, Dublin 1, Ireland.
Roisin McNamaraEmergency Department, Temple Street Children's University Hospital, Dublin 1, Ireland.
Noelle CassidyDepartment of Orthopaedics, Temple Street Children's University Hospital, Dublin 1, Ireland.
Stephanie RyanDepartment of Radiology, Temple Street Children's University Hospital, Dublin 1, Ireland.
Kathryn HarrisDepartment of Microbiology, Virology and Infection Prevention and Control, Great Ormond Street NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK.
Richard DrewIrish Meningitis and Sepsis Reference Laboratory, Temple Street Children's University Hospital, Dublin 1, Ireland.
Temple Street Children's University Hospital · IEGreat Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust · GBRoyal College of Surgeons in Ireland · IE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundCulture yield in osteomyelitis and septic arthritis is low, emphasising the role for molecular techniques.

aimsThe purpose of this study was to review the laboratory investigation of childhood osteomyelitis and septic arthritis.

methodsA retrospective review was undertaken in an acute tertiary referral paediatric hospital from January 2010 to December 2016. Cases were only included if they had a positive culture or bacterial PCR result from a bone/joint specimen or blood culture, or had radiographic evidence of osteomyelitis.

resultsSeventy-eight patients met the case definition; 52 (66%) were male. The median age was 4.8 years. Blood cultures were positive in 16 of 56 cases (29%), with 11 deemed clinically significant (Staphylococcus aureus = 8, group A Streptococcus = 3). Thirty-seven of 78 (47%) bone/joint samples were positive by culture with S. aureus (n = 16), coagulase-negative Staphylococcus (n = 9) and group A Streptococcus (n = 4), being the most common organisms. Sixteen culture-negative samples were sent for bacterial PCR, and four were positive (Kingella kingae = 2, Streptococcus pneumoniae = 1, group A Streptococcus = 1).

conclusionsSequential culture and PCR testing can improve the detection rate of causative organisms in paediatric bone and joint infections, particularly for fastidious microorganisms such as K. kingae. PCR testing can be reserved for cases where culture is negative after 48 h. These results have been used to develop a standardised diagnostic test panel for bone and joint infections at our institution.

Indexed as

Real-Time Polymerase Chain ReactionAdolescentArthritis, InfectiousBacteriaBlood CultureChildChild, PreschoolFemaleHumansInfantKingella kingaeMaleOsteomyelitisRetrospective StudiesStaphylococcus aureusOsteomyelitisPaediatricPolymerase chain reactionSeptic arthritis

Identifiers

PMID30706296
OpenAlexW2914704991

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.