Clinical evaluation of the (1, 3)-β-D-glucan assay as an aid to diagnosis of fungal infections in severe pneumonia patients

Objective To evaluate (1, 3)-β-D-glucan (BG) assay as an aid for invasive fungal infection (IFI) diagnosis in severe pneumonia patients(diagnosis followed 2007 American Thoracic Society(ATS) and Infectious Disease Society of America(IDSA) severe pneumonia standard). Methods BG antigenemia was measured by BG Assay Box. IFIs was classified according to the blood fungal laboratory reports. Results 558 patients (185 females, 373 males, mean age 64.7) were included. 41 patients were proven to be fungal infected to be classified in exposure group.BG assay mean value in exposure group and unexposure group were (568.53±796.57)pg/mL, (51.4±63.27)pg/mL, respectively.Patients in the exposure group had significantly higher BG assay value than patients in the unexposure group (P<0.05). For the cutoff 100 pg/mL recommended by manufacturer, the sensitivity, specificity, positive predict value and negative predict value of the BG assay were 92.7%, 92.5%, 49.4% and 0.6%, respectively. Conclusion BG assay has positive clinical value in invasive fungal infection diagnosis in severe pneumonia patients. Key words: (1, 3)-β-D-glucan (BG) assay; Severe pneumonia; Invasive fungal infection