TABLE 1.
Efficiency of different techniques in the diagnosis of cryptococcal meningitis in different hostsa
| Reference | Country | No. of patients | Host condition | No. positive by CSF Ag (%) | No. positive by CSF culture (%) | No. positive by India ink (%) | No. positive by serum Ag (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 | Brazil | 65 | AIDS | 3/3 (100) | 65/65 (100) | 61/65 (93.8) | NR |
| 4 | United States | 89 | AIDS | 80/88 (90.9) | 89/89 (100) | 64/87 (73.5) | 70/71 (98.6) |
| 3 | Australia | 128 | AIDS | 112/128 (87.5) | 111/128 (86.7) | 93/128 (72.6) | NR |
| 1 | Italy | 119 | AIDS | 112/114 (98.2) | 115/118 (97.5) | 84/95 (88.4) | 111/112 (99.1) |
| Total | 401 | 307/333 (92.2) | 380/401 (94.7) | 302/375 (80.5) | 181/183 (98.9) | ||
| 12 | Brazil | 44 | Immunocompetent | 5/6 (83.3) | 26/30 (86.7) | 34/44 (77.2) | NR |
| 9 | Australia | 31 | Immunocompetent | 27/31 (87.1) | 26/31 (83.5) | 19/31 (61.3) | NR |
| 3 | Australia | 41 | Immunocompetent | 40/41 (97.6) | 39/41 (95.1) | 36/41 (87.8) | NR |
| Total | 116 | 72/78 (92.3) | 91/102 (89.2) | 89/116 (76.7) | 181/183 (98.9) | ||
| 12 | Brazil | 19 | HIV negative, immunocompromised | NR | 17/18 (94.4) | 14/18 (77.8) | NR |
| 6 | United States | 5 | Cancer patients | 5/5 (100) | 5/5 (100) | 5/5 (100) | NR |
| 10 | United States | 157 | HIV negative, immunocompromised | 144/149 (96.6) | 132/149 (89) | 68/133 (51) | 91/105 (87) |
| 5 | United Statesb | 122 | Organ transplant recipients | 37/37 (100) | 76/82 (93) | 38/47 (77) | 18/21 (86) |
| 13 | United States | 28 | Organ transplant recipients | 28/28 (100) | 21/28 (77) | 14/28 (50) | 20/22 (90.9) |
| Total | 331 | 214/219 (97.7) | 251/282 (89) | 139/231 (60.2) | 129/148 (87.2) | ||
| Overall total | 848 | 593/630 (94.1) | 722/785 (92) | 430/722 (59.6) | 310/331 (93.6) |
a
Ag, antigen; NR, not reported.
b
Review of published reports.