EVALUATION OF A RAPID TEST FOR THE IDENTIFICATION OF Mycobacterium tuberculosis AND SIX OTHER SPECIES OF ATYPICAL MYCOBACTERIA DIRECTLY FROM SPUTUM

Introduction: The diagnosis of tuberculosis and, in general, infectious disease caused by mycobacteria is a
slow process, which significantly delayed the initiation of appropriate antibiotic therapy. The development
of molecular techniques that allow detection and identification of mycobacteria directly from clinical
specimen would be a desirable to shorten this period.
Material and methods: We used seven international reference strains of mycobacteria to inoculate,
artificially, sputum, and perform tests that determine the ability of the Oligo Speed Mycobacteria® to
identify the bacteria directly, without having to grow the samples in conventional culture media.
Results: The test correctly identified seven strains used, even when the bacteria were found at
concentrations below the detection limits of the smear.
Conclusions: The Speed-Oligo Mycobacteria® could be valid for the direct detection and identification of
mycobacteria in sputum, including those with a negative smear