Laboratory diagnosis of Neisseria meningitidis from the viewpoint of the German Reference Laboratory for Meningococci. (German)

The German Reference Laboratory for meningococci is responsible for laboratory surveillance of meningococcal disease in Germany and collaborates closely with the Robert Koch Institute. Bacterial typing beyond serogrouping is conducted exclusively using DNA sequence-based techniques, in consensus with the European Monitoring Group on Meningococci (EMGM). Typing data are used in computer-assisted detection of spatio-temporal clusters of disease. They are visualized using the EpiScanGIS geographic information system. Data from the reference laboratory are matched to national notification data at the Robert Koch Institute to provide a comprehensive data set of high quality for submission to the TESSy database of the European Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (ECDC). The estimated coverage of notified cases is satisfactory because of the efforts of laboratories that submit data. In the present review, diagnosis of Neisseria meningitidis, antimicrobial resistance testing, and fine typing are discussed from the viewpoint of the reference laboratory, including issues related to laboratory safety management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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