Procalcitonin (PCT) is a 116 amino acid peptide precursor of calcitonin. In the absence of infection, it is produced at very low levels in a few highly selected tissues. However, at the onset of infection bacterial factors and host inflammatory cytokines...
Southern Africa has a very high background prevalence of HIV infection, making exposure risk both inside and outside the occupational setting high. The approach to occupational, sexual and other forms of exposure (bites, assaults, trauma, injecting drug...
Alternate or modified Westergren methods to measure erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) have been adopted by laboratories worldwide. These methods offer reduction in analysis time and improved operator safety. The iSED Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate...
Acute Viral Hepatitis is the most common cause of jaundice in pregnancy. HBV infection during pregnancy is usually mild, not associated with increased mortality or teratogenicity, and should not prompt consideration of termination. Acute HBV infection...
Pathcare Reference Laboratory has recently instituted a rapid blood culture ID technique where organisms from positive blood cultures can now be identified after about 4 hours from the time when the blood culture system flags the blood culture bottle as...
Although few gastrointestinal infections may require specific therapy, the quick and efficient detection of a causative agent of diarrhoea may limit unnecessary use of antimicrobials, reduce hospitalisation duration and also provide valuable information...
PathCare offers a Meningitis/Encephalitis Multiplexed PCR test with an expanded organism profile and reduced turn-around time, detecting 14 potential central nervous system (CNS) pathogens. The ME Panel is able to detect and identify multiple bacterial,...
Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) is a serious complication of diabetes mellitus, and consists of the biochemical triad of ketosis, hyperglycaemia and acidaemia. DKA usually occurs as a result of an absolute or relative insulin deficiency and an...
Vitamin B12 and folate are vitamins required for normal haematopoiesis and neurologic function. They are often considered together, although folate deficiency has become exceedingly rare in individuals who are living in developed countries and...
The WHO recommends that each patient with suspected tuberculosis should benefit from at least one NAAT (nucleic acid amplification test), as these tests have enhanced sensitivity and specificity above conventional microscopy. Over the past...