Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41868021›Full record

ArticleInfection and drug resistance2026

Clinical Utility of Metagenomic Next-Generation Sequencing in Diagnosing Central Nervous System Infections in Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant Recipients: A Retrospective and Prospective Cohort Study.

Minghua Zhan, Shangyu Tu, Shuo Yang, Yuyao Yin, Zhanwei Wang, Feifei Zhang, Yawei Zhang, Qi Wang, Chunjiang Zhao, Xiaojuan Wang and 2 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Infection and drug resistance, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
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

12 authors.

Minghua Zhan *Department of Clinical Laboratory, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
Shangyu Tu *Department of Clinical Laboratory, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
Shuo YangDepartment of Clinical Laboratory, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
Yuyao YinDepartment of Clinical Laboratory, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
Zhanwei WangDepartment of Clinical Laboratory, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
Feifei ZhangDepartment of Clinical Laboratory, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
Yawei ZhangDepartment of Clinical Laboratory, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
Qi WangDepartment of Clinical Laboratory, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
Chunjiang ZhaoDepartment of Clinical Laboratory, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
Xiaojuan WangDepartment of Clinical Laboratory, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
Hui WangDepartment of Clinical Laboratory, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
Hongbin ChenDepartment of Clinical Laboratory, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing, People's Republic of China.ORCID 0000-0001-5071-2768

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Diagnosing central nervous system infections (CNSI) in hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) recipients remains challenging due to nonspecific presentations and low sensitivity of conventional microbiological methods. Methods: This study evaluated the clinical utility of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) in 127 HSCT recipients (87 retrospective, 40 prospective) from Peking University People's Hospital. Pathogens detected by mNGS and conventional methods were validated via Sanger sequencing. Results: mNGS identified 20 pathogen-positive samples (19 confirmed by sequencing), while conventional methods detected none. mNGS demonstrated 82.6% sensitivity and 99.0% specificity for CNSI diagnosis, with sensitivity rising to 100.0% when combined with conventional approaches. Notably, mNGS excelled in detecting viral pathogens, particularly in allogeneic HSCT recipients. Conclusion: Our findings advocate for the integration of mNGS into the diagnostic algorithm for CNSI, especially in immunocompromised hosts. This approach enables earlier and more precise pathogen identification, which has the potential to streamline antimicrobial therapy and improve clinical management. To maximize its benefit and ensure reliable interpretation, mNGS results should be correlated with comprehensive clinical and paraclinical data. Further prospective studies are warranted to validate its impact on therapeutic decision-making and patient prognosis.

Indexed as

bone marrow transplantationcentral nervous system infectionmetagenomic next-generation sequencing

Identifiers

PMID41868021
PMCPMC13005251

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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.