Nontuberculous Mycobacteria (NTM) Diagnosis

Nontuberculous Mycobacteria (NTM) can be very difficult to diagnose.

One company, Designer Diagnostics (http://www.DesignerDiagnostics.com), has developed NTM test kits for the rapid identification of NTM infections. Designer Diagnostics Test Kits provide a highly cost effective, highly efficient, low infrastructure solution for identifying and testing sensitivity of Nontuberculous Mycobacteria (NTM) Mycobacteria that are capable of utilizing paraffin wax as a sole carbon source or those that are hydrophobic.

Test Kit Benefits Include:

• Ability to provide much earlier diagnosis. (less than 1 week)
• Provides quick and easy antibiotic sensitivity testing
• Long shelf life
• Can be stored in extremely hostile environments
• Cost effective compared to all other traditional methods
• Does not require new large capital expenditures
• Can be easily integrated into any lab environment from the most advanced to a simple mobile lab
• Results can be quickly translated into PCR testing

The test kits are specifically designed to be used for the rapid diagnosis of as many as 15 strains of Mycobacteria (including Nocardia, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, M.avium complex) from a sputum, blood or fecal matter sample dependent on the bacteria being examined.

Treating Nontuberculous Mycobacteria (NTM)

Treating NTM infections can be extremely difficult and may require multiple drugs. To avoid becoming resistant to the drugs, doctors often require their patients to take several different drugs, which may cause severe side effects. Patients must also be closely monitored during the entire process, which may be as long as two years.