Browsing by Author "Mercier, Toine"

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    Immune Parameters for Diagnosis and Treatment Monitoring in Invasive Mold Infection.
    (Journal of fungi (Basel, Switzerland), 2019-12) Jenks, Jeffrey D; Rawlings, Stephen A; Garcia-Vidal, Carol; Koehler, Philipp; Mercier, Toine; Prattes, Juergen; Lass-Flörl, Cornelia; Martin-Gomez, M Teresa; Buchheidt, Dieter; Pagano, Livio; Gangneux, Jean-Pierre; van de Veerdonk, Frank L; Netea, Mihai G; Carvalho, Agostinho; Hoenigl, Martin
    Infections caused by invasive molds, including Aspergillus spp., can be difficult to diagnose and remain associated with high morbidity and mortality. Thus, early diagnosis and targeted systemic antifungal treatment remains the most important predictive factor for a successful outcome in immunocompromised individuals with invasive mold infections. Diagnosis remains difficult due to low sensitivities of diagnostic tests including culture and other mycological tests for mold pathogens, particularly in patients on mold-active antifungal prophylaxis. As a result, antifungal treatment is rarely targeted and reliable markers for treatment monitoring and outcome prediction are missing. Thus, there is a need for improved markers to diagnose invasive mold infections, monitor response to treatment, and assist in determining when antifungal therapy should be escalated, switched, or can be stopped. This review focuses on the role of immunologic markers and specifically cytokines in diagnosis and treatment monitoring of invasive mold infections.
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    The Aspergillus Lateral Flow Assay for the Diagnosis of Invasive Aspergillosis: an Update.
    (Current fungal infection reports, 2020-01) Jenks, Jeffrey D; Miceli, Marisa H; Prattes, Juergen; Mercier, Toine; Hoenigl, Martin

    Purpose of review

    To review the data on the Aspergillus lateral flow assay for the diagnosis of invasive Aspergillosis.

    Recent findings

    Aspergillus spp. cause a wide spectrum of disease with invasive aspergillosis (IA) as its most severe manifestation. Early and reliable diagnosis of disease is crucial to decrease associated morbidity and mortality, and enable prompt initiation of treatment for IA. Most recently, non-culture-based tests, such as Aspergillus galactomannan (GM), have been useful in early identification and treatment of patients with IA. However, cost, turnaround time, and variable performance indifferent populations at risk for IA remain significant drawbacks to the use of this test. Several diagnostic tests for IA have been developed, including the sōna Aspergillus GM Lateral flow assay (GM-LFA) rapid test.

    Summary

    The GM-LFA has shown excellent performance for the diagnosis of IA in patients with hematologic malignancy and may be a viable option for settings where ELISA GM testing is not feasible. Further evaluation of the GM-LFA in the non-hematology setting is ongoing, including in solid organ transplant recipients and patients in the intensive care unit.