Biomerieux's Vidas Brahms PCT test has been selected by the Royal Hampshire County Hospital (RHCH) to indicate bacterial infection and help guide prescription of antibiotics.
The Microbiology Department will use the test for measurement of serum procalcitonin (PCT) levels.
PCT, an early biomarker that increases during bacterial infection and sepsis, can assist in optimising and monitoring antibiotic treatment.
Vidas Brahms PCT is an easy-to-use, cost-effective test performed on the Vidas/Mini Vidas instruments.
Dr Kordo Saeed, consultant microbiologist at the RHCH, said: 'We used Vidas Brahms PCT to carry out a six-month evaluation of the effect of procalcitonin testing on our antibiotic decision process and it proved very helpful.
'Microbiologists and clinicians were able to use PCT concentration, in addition to clinical history, as a guide to deciding whether to start patients on a course of antibiotics or not, or to discontinue ongoing treatment.
'Where there was clinical uncertainty and PCT levels were raised, early treatment was initiated.
'If PCT was below the cut-off levels, antibiotic use was avoided without any adverse effects on the patient.
'By using PCT measurements to reduce unnecessary antimicrobial prescription, "collateral damage" such as Clostridium difficile associated diseases (CDAD) and IV line infections can be decreased.
'This leads to shorter inpatient treatment and savings in staff time and antibiotic costs, making PCT testing an important tool in our antibiotic stewardship programme.'
