Pharyngitis+Scientific+Studies

By: Adam Karmally

Two Scientific Articles on Pharyngitis

Acute pharyngitis in adults is primarily a viral infection; only about 10% of cases are of bacterial etiology. Most cases of acute pharyngitis are caused by //Streptococcus pyogenes//. The articled discussed one laboratory method for diagnosing //Streptococcus pyogenes.// This is known as rapid antigen diagnostic testing (RADT). RADT is an in-office test done by a clinician in order to determine whether or not a patient has streptococcal pharyngitis , which is a group A streptococcal infection of the pharynx and p ossibly other parts of the body most commonly caused by the // Streptococcus pyogenes // bacterium. This can be processed during an emergency department visit which has become a popular alternative to throat swab cultures. A study was conducted to define the sensitivity and specificity of RADT. Using throat cultures as a result as the gold standard, 100 emergency department patients were tested who were presented with symptoms consistent with //Streptococcal// //pyogene//. // The results were as followed: they found //that RADT had a sensitivity of 68.2% (15 of 22), a specificity of 89.7% (70 of 78), a positive predictive value of 65.2% (15 of 23), and a negative predictive value of 90.9% (70 of 77). As a result they concluded that RADT is useful in the emergency department when the clinical suspicion is //Streptococcus pyogenes//, but results should be confirmed with a throat culture in patients whose RADT results are negative (Celikmen, Cetin, Ay, Akta, and Sarikaya, 2010) .

The second study I looked at was very interesting. The purpose of this study was to analyze adherence to antibiotic treatment in pharyngitis and evaluate the association of rapid antigen detection tests (RADT) and treatment adherence among patients 18 years of age or over with pharyngitis treated with different antibiotic regimens. Patient adherence was assessed by electronic monitoring. The adherence outcomes considered were antibiotic-taking adherence, correct dosing, and good timing adherence during at least 80% of the antibiotic course. The results were as followed: A total of 196 patients were recruited. The percentage of container openings was 77.9%±17.7%, being significantly higher for patients in whom the RADTs were performed compared with those in whom this test was not undertaken (80.1% vs. 70.8% for thrice-daily antibiotic regimens and 88.1% vs. 76.5% for twice-daily regimens; p < 0.01). The other variables of adherence were also better among patients undergoing RADT in both those who took at least 80% of the pills (71.3% vs. 42.2%; p < 0.001) as well as those with good timing adherence (52.5% vs. 32.8%; p < 0.01). Furthermore, correct dosing was always greater when the patient had undergone an RADT. In conclusion form this article adherence to antibiotic treatment is higher when RADT is carried out at the consultation prior to administration of antibiotic treatment. (Bayona, Hernández, and Moragas, 2010).

References: Akta, Can, Didem Ay, Asli Çetin, and Ferudun Celikmen. "Sensitivity and specificity of rapid antigen detection testing for diagnosing pharyngitis in the emergency department.." //ENT: Ear, Nose & Throat Journal//. 89.4 (2010): p180-182, 3p. Print.

Bayona, Carolina, Marta Hernández, and Ana Moragas. "Association between use of rapid antigen detection tests and adherence to antibiotics in suspected streptococcal pharyngitis.." //Scandinavian Journal of Primary Health Care;// 28.1 (2010): p12-17, 6p. Web. 21 May 2010.