All issues > Volume 37(6); 1994

Original Article

J Korean Pediatr Soc. 1994;37(6):812-815. Published online June 15, 1994.

Rapid Detection Test for Streptococcus pyogenes in Normal Carriers of Group A Beta-Hemolytic Streptococci

Sung Ho SH Cha¹, Seon Ju SJ Kim²

¹Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, Kyunghee University, Seoul, Korea
²Department of Clinical Pathology, Capital Armed Forces Hospital, Seoul, Korea

Abstract

Streptococcus pyogenes has been regarded very importantly because of its severe sequelae, namely rheumatic fever and acute glomerulonephropathy. Rapid tests to identify this organism have been studied widely in developed countries in 1980s. We proceeded the rapid test(A Strept ADTM, Denka Seiken Co., Japan) of S. pyogenes on 141 children who were known to be carriers of this organism to evaluate whether the rapid test could be used at the pediatric office base. Throat cultures were taken simultaneously to evaluate the efficacy of this rapid test. The test showed very low sensitivity of 17% (13/14) and high specificity of 99% (65/66). The positive predictive value was 93% (13/14) and negative predictive value 51% (65/127) respectively. Most of the positive results of rapid test have been agreed with the actual number of colonies on the throat culture. The reasons for the low sensitivity and negative predictive valure of the rapid test should be discovered and supplemented if it could be applicable to the pediatric office and accurate evaluation of the rapid test in patients with acute pharyngitis is needed.

Keywords :Dtreptococcus pyogenes, Rapid test