An international group of scientists has discovered two genes that are activated when a bacterial infection enters a child's body.

Now a simple analysis will help to distinguish a bacterial infection from a viral one, which is important in the practice of infectious disease specialists and pediatricians.

At JAMA, Imperial College London staff report that IFI44L and FAM89A genes are activated only in the presence of pathogenic bacteria.

In other words, you can identify the type of pathogen by the reaction of the patient's body.

Someone will say that this is inaccurate, but applying such an analysis in a clinic is still better than sending samples to a specialized laboratory, and then waiting for a week for a response and blindly treating.

The authors note that meningitis, enteritis, pneumonia can all be the result of both bacterial and viral infections.. Drawing a clear line quickly means choosing the right treatment. But how to do it in modern hospitals?

So we are witnessing the general, often completely unnecessary use of antibiotics.. Antibacterial drugs are completely useless against viruses, which may be the true cause of your pharyngitis, bronchitis, otitis media, or sinusitis..

The consequences of inappropriate use of antibiotics: the development of antibiotic resistance with the emergence of resistant killer strains, extra cash costs, as well as a variety of side effects that can delay your recovery.

In the United States, antibiotics are in the top 10 most commonly prescribed drug groups. However, local experts are confident that up to 50% of their prescriptions could have been avoided, prescribed at a different dose or with a different regimen..

More than 2,000,000 Americans are exposed to resistant bacteria every year, and at least 23,000 die.. This is due to the irrational use of antibiotics..

“Fever is one of the main reasons a child is taken to the hospital.. In many cases, our doctors send home children with life-threatening bacterial infections, prescribing only symptomatic treatment - they think that it is a common virus. And, conversely, antibiotics are often mistakenly prescribed for viral infections, ”said Professor Michael Levin of ICL.

Dr.

Levin's study included 240 children (mean age 19 months) who were admitted to hospital with fever in hospitals in the United States, Great Britain and the Netherlands..

Along with traditional microbiological analyzes, the scientists determined the activity of the IFI44L and FAM89A genes in the leukocytes of children.. For this, RNA microchips were used, which can simultaneously determine changes in 48,000 genes with just one drop of blood..

The accuracy of the new analysis method turned out to be at the level of 95-100%. It remains to wait for it in our hospitals... medbe. ru.