The spectrum of simultaneously detected pathogens identified in infections by the FilmArray panels

Aim of the study: It has been previously observed that the FilmArray Panel assays result in the simultaneous detection of multiple pathogens. However, there is limited data on the frequency of such simultaneous detections, the prevalence of certain pathogens in such co-detections and the possible existence of specific patterns. 

Materials and Methodology: In order to investigate the spectrum of multiple isolations in our patient series, we have retrospectively looked at the results of all the samples which had been processed with the FilmArray panel assays, during the last one year-period in our hospital. 

Results: Among 1041 samples, 8.3% revealed multiple pathogens (>1), 8.7% of the respiratory samples and 8.8% of the gastrointestinal samples. Human Rhinovirus/Enterovirus (HRV) and enteropathogenic E.coli (EPEC) were the most frequent pathogens detected on multiple respiratory and gastrointestinal co-detections, respectively, while the combinations of HRV/Adenovirus and EPEC/Campylobacter spp were the commonest.

Conclusions: Our patient series revealed that the application of the FilmArray panel assays had a low, although significant, possibility of simultaneous detection of multiple pathogens, with HRV and EPEC predominating in such samples. Further studies are needed to explore the clinical significance of such pathogen-specific co-detections, arbitrarily named co-infections.