A preliminary study on the use of counterimmunoelectrophoresis and coagglutination methods in the diagnosis of bacterial meningitis

The usefulness of counterimmunoelectrophoresis (CIEP) and coagglutination (COAG) methods in the diagnosis of bacterial meningitis was evaluated. Out of the 31 cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) specimens which had a cell count of >5 x10^6 wbc/l and were negative on gram stain and culture, pneumococcal antigens were detected in four specimens and Haemophilus influenzae type b antigen was detected in one specimen by both the methods. No false positives were detected in 10 specimens obtained from cases of febrile fits whose CSF showed no evidence of meningitis. One CSF sample, from which Klebsiella spp. was isolated, cross reacted with the meningococcal polyvalent group A-D antiserum in the CIEP test. From this study we found that these methods are rapid, simple and useful adjunctive tests In the diagnosis of bacterial meningitis, especially in the partially treated cases.