Huang et al. present a case of a 10-year-old immunocompetent boy presenting with a 5-day history of intermittent, left-sided chest pain, having a left lung nodule caused by Streptococcus intermedius. The nodule was identified by chest radiography. The cultures of aspirates of the nodule were negative but the germ was identified by metagenomic next-generation sequencing. He was given proper antibiotics and did not require a surgical intervention. The authors highlight the rarity of the case and the importance of metagenomic next-generation sequencing in the diagnostic process.
Zhuang et al. reported a case of Congenital tuberculosis in a neonate following in vitro fertilization-embryo transfer. They performed pathogenic microorganism metagenomic analysis and isolated the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex in a preterm infant poorly responding to treatment. Subsequently, maternal pelvic tuberculosis was confirmed. Since, in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment and pregnancy can exacerbate latent tuberculosis, identifying maternal tuberculosis during IVF treatment using metagenomic approach can be a useful option.
Rodriguez et al. reported a case of an unusual pneumonia pathogen, detected by plasma cell free next-generation sequencing in an immunocompetent adolescent with acute respiratory distress syndrome. This case details a rapid diagnosis of legionella pneumonia causing severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) in an otherwise healthy adolescent through plasma microbial cell-free DNA next generation sequencing (mcfDNA-NGS). Diagnosis by mcfDNA-NGS of this unexpected pathogen led to narrowing of antimicrobials and this novel technology can be a useful tool for paediatric infectious disease diagnosis.