Meningitis Panel PCR

eDH Procedure Code(s)

LAB4131 ME Panel PCR + CNS Culture
LAB4125 Meningitis Panel PCR —LAB ONLY

An Emperic Therapy Guide for adult patients is available to aid in selecting optimal therapy for pathogens detected by this assay.

Important Limitations:

This test should be interpreted in conjunction with other laboratory data and the patient’s clinical presentation.
If there is a strong clinical suspicion for HSV encephalitis, a single negative test does not rule this entity out.
The ME Panel is not as sensitive as the cryptococcal antigen test for the diagnosis of cryptococcal meningitis.
HHV-6 is chromosomally integrated into the DNA of 1-2% of the human population. Detection does not equal disease.
This assay does NOT test for neurotropic arbovirus infection. Arboviruses potentially found in the northeastern USA include West Nile virus, Eastern Equine Encephalitis virus, Powassan virus, and Jamestown Canyon virus. If these pathogens are suspected clinically, please contact Infectious Disease for guidance around optimal test ordering.

Only lumbar collection of CSF is accepted; shunts are not permitted.

Specimen Type	Specimen Source	Acceptable Containers		Minimum Test Volume (mL)
Cerebrospinal Fluid	Cerebrospinal Fluid		CSF-R	1.0

Transport Temperature: Ambient

Specimen Stability
Ambient: 24 hours
Refrigerated: 7 days

Component	LOINC Code
CRYPTOCOCCUS NEOFORMANS/GATTII	49098-7
CYTOMEGALOVIRUS (CMV)	82189-2
ENTEROVIRUS	29558-4
ESCHERICHIA COLI K1	61398-4
HAEMOPHILUS INFLUENZAE	82183-5
HERPES SIMPLEX VIRUS 1 (HSV-1)	16952-4
HERPES SIMPLEX VIRUS 2 (HSV-2)	16960-7
HUMAN HERPES VIRUS 6 (HHV-6)	33942-4
HUMAN PARECHOVIRUS	51669-0
LISTERIA MONOCYTOGENES	82184-3
MENINGITIS PANEL PCR	82180-1
NEISSERIA MENINGITIDIS	49671-1
STREPTOCOCCUS AGALACTIAE	48683-7
STREPTOCOCCUS PNEUMONIAE	82187-6
VARICELLA ZOSTER VIRUS (VZV)	82188-4

2 Hours

87483

Microbiology

Cheshire Medical Center Laboratory (CHE)
Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center Laboratory (MHMH)