Respiratory samples from more than 100 critically ill young patients at Great Ormond Street Hospital were sent for metagenomic testing, a technique that sequences all genetic material present in a single sample to identify bacteria, viruses and fungi at once. It contrasts with conventional methods, where clinicians must decide in advance what they are looking for.
In many cases the results influenced what doctors prescribed. The BBC reports that metagenomics can detect infections that standard tests miss, meaning better outcomes for some critically ill patients.
The report highlights the case of 10-year-old Willow Crowther from Kent, who became dangerously ill with pneumonia in March. The illness triggered a seizure and multiple cardiac arrests, and she was admitted to intensive care. Her mother, Stacey Moore, was told Willow had a 50 per cent chance of survival.
"The consultant said... we should bring our family up to say goodbye to her. This is how critical and in how much danger she was of passing away," Moore told the BBC.
The test identified that Willow had a drug-resistant bacterial infection which needed a different antibiotic to the one she had been prescribed. "The fact that they had a test there available to her was paramount. It saved her life," Moore said.