Evaluation of the Vaginal Panel Realtime PCR kit (Vircell, SL) for diagnosing vaginitis: A comparative study with routinely used diagnostics

PLoS One. 2024 Nov 6;19(11):e0313414. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0313414. eCollection 2024.

Abstract

Vaginitis is a prevalent clinical disorder associated with several adverse health consequences, prompting women to seek medical care. In this study we evaluate the Vaginal Panel Real-Time PCR kit (qPCR test) against routinely used diagnostics for detection of bacterial vaginosis (BV), vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC), and trichomoniasis. A total of 1011 vaginal swab specimens were analyzed. The routinely diagnostic methods for BV was Gram stain-based Nugent score. VVC presence was detected by culture, and Candida species were identified using MALDI-TOF MS. Trichomonas vaginalis was identified by culture in a selective medium. Molecular analyses were conducted on the MagXtract® 3200 System and analyzed using the CFX96™ Real-Time PCR Detection System. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of the qPCR test compared to the reference method for BV diagnosis was 93.1%, 88.8%, 90.1% and 92.2%, respectively, with a Kappa value of 0.82. For Candida species, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value were 96.0%, 98.4%, 95.3%, and 98.7%, respectively. The qPCR test detected 32 additional positive samples for Candida not reported by the routinely used diagnostics. For trichomoniasis, the qPCR test identified T. vaginalis in fifteen specimens, despite no microscopic detection in cultured specimens. Our results demonstrate that the Vaginal Panel Real-Time PCR kit shows optimal concordance with routinely used diagnostics for diagnosing vaginitis. Furthermore, enhancing detection of T. vaginalis. However, further validation studies are necessary to confirm its full diagnostic accuracy. The use of nucleic acid amplification tests (NAATs) provides rapid and accurate diagnosis, crucial for early detection and treatment of vaginitis.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study
  • Evaluation Study

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Candida / genetics
  • Candida / isolation & purification
  • Candidiasis, Vulvovaginal* / diagnosis
  • Candidiasis, Vulvovaginal* / microbiology
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Reagent Kits, Diagnostic
  • Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction* / methods
  • Sensitivity and Specificity
  • Trichomonas Vaginitis / diagnosis
  • Trichomonas vaginalis* / genetics
  • Trichomonas vaginalis* / isolation & purification
  • Vagina / microbiology
  • Vaginitis / diagnosis
  • Vaginitis / microbiology
  • Vaginosis, Bacterial / diagnosis
  • Vaginosis, Bacterial / microbiology

Substances

  • Reagent Kits, Diagnostic

Grants and funding

The study was supported by Vircell S.L. AdS is supported by Instituto de Salud Carlos III (grant number JR22/00055). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.