Detection of Clostridioides difficile toxin B gene in clinical stool specimens using rapid diagnostic quenching probe-polymerase chain reaction assay

We tested the accuracy of quenching probe-polymerase chain reaction (QP-PCR) for detecting Clostridioides difficile toxin B gene (tcdB) in stools from inpatients with suspected C. difficile infection and compared the results with other nucleic acid amplification tests (NAATs). Toxigenic culture results were used as reference for com-parison. QP-PCR had comparable diagnostic accuracy with other NAATs and prior bead-beating enabled detection of tcdB in specimens judged as negative, without bead-beating. Taken together, the QP-PCR either with or without bead-beating showed sufficient effectiveness for detecting tcdB in stool specimens.

Automated summary

We evaluated the accuracy of quenching probe-polymerase chain reaction (QP-PCR) for detecting Clostridioides difficile toxin B gene (tcdB) in stools from suspected C. difficile infection patients and compared it with other nucleic acid amplification tests (NAATs). Toxigenic culture results were used as a reference. QP-PCR showed comparable diagnostic accuracy with other NAATs and enabled detection of tcdB in specimens deemed negative without bead-beating. Overall, QP-PCR, with or without bead-beating, was effective in detecting tcdB in stool specimens.