Staphylococcus aureus lives as a commensal on human
skin.
It can cause infections as simple as pimples
and boils, but where there is broken skin, or indwelling medical
devices such as IV lines, or catheters, it can cause more serious
invasive complications.
One cohort study concluded that ONE THIRD of
patients with S. aureus bacteraemia DIED within 30 days of
infection.
It is vitally important, both for the patient
and for the hospital that these infections are diagnosed and
appropriately treated in a timely manner.
Following a positive blood culture,
traditional culture and susceptibility testing methods take up to
48 hours for a result.
Inverness Medical is proud to announce that we
will shortly be launching the BinaxNOW®
Staphylococcus aureus Test, a qualitative in
vitro immunochromatographic assay for the rapid detection of
S. aureus in blood cultures positive for Gram positive
cocci in clusters. A positive result indicates the presence of
S. aureus.
This rapid test gives results in just 30 minutes from blood
culture.