The Aspergillus Lateral Flow Assay for the Diagnosis of Invasive Aspergillosis: an Update

Abstract

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.

Serum Aspergillus galactomannan lateral flow assay for the diagnosis of invasive aspergillosis: A single‐centre study

“…6 Galactomannan was studied in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BAL) in a single-centre retrospective study; in proven and probable patients, sensitivity and specificity were 89% and 88%, respectively. 8 In another study involving 235 multicentre patients with a diagnosis of haematological malignancy, sensitivity and specificity were found to be 83% and 87%, respectively, when comparing proven or probable cases to the control group. 9 The goal of this study was to demonstrate efficacy of LFA in our patients by using the IMMY Sona Aspergillus Galactomannan lateral flow test for the purpose of early diagnosis of IA and comparing it to synchronous ELISA results.…”

“…has been reported; however, it is not clear if this in vitro cross-reactivity is clinically relevant for patients infected with these fungi. 7,8 Lateral flow assay is a method that has been shown to be effective in more than one study in serum samples. In a single-centre study in which samples of 239 patients with haematological malignancy were evaluated, sensitivity was 49%, and specificity was 95%.…”

Chronical rhino-orbital mucormycosis in an immunocompetent host: A case report

“…The usual clinical manifestations are exophthalmos, ptosis, diplopia, ophthalmoplegia and reduced visual acuity. The most common early signs are nasal congestion or facial pain [ 7 , 10 , 11 ].…”

“…The causative agent identified in 11 to 27% of cases 76]. We can only find a granulomatous inflammatory reaction with the presence of giant cells and polymorphonuclear cells without caseous necrosis [ 10 ], which was the case in the first biopsy which only indicated the presence on a nonspecific granulomatosis inflammation.…”

Invasive aspergillosis in critically ill patients: Review of definitions and diagnostic approaches

“…Therefore, the AspICU criteria have been modified in some studies 10,23,50,57 to include positive BALF GM as entry criterion, which is essential to make them applicable to broader cohorts of ICU patients, such as going beyond the subset with cultural detection of Aspergillus spp. In addition, the inclusion of newer diagnostic tests such as BALF Aspergillus real‐time polymerase chain reaction (PCR), the Aspergillus ‐specific lateral flow device (LFD) and Aspergillus galactomannan lateral flow assay (LFA) point‐of‐care (POC) tests have been recommended 57,58 . International work on improved definitions of IA in the ICU is currently in progress 50,59 …”