Here we describe a cohort study to determine the performance of a commercially available Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization (FISH)-kit on samples of 65 consecutive patients suspected of orthopedic implant associated infections (IAI). Culture is routinely used and has a high specificity and sensitivity but requires days to more than a week for slow growing bacteria. FISH results are available within 45–60 minutes and thus specific treatment can start immediately. In addition, previous antibiotic therapy may hinder culture while bacteria may still be detected by FISH. The hemoFISH-kit from Miacom diagnostics (Dusseldorf, Germany) was used on a total of 82 joint aspirates, sonication fluids and tissue samples of 65 consecutive patients to detect and identify possible microorganisms. This FISH-kit contains a universal 16S rRNA probe and species-specific probes for bacteria commonly encountered in blood infections. FISH and culture were compared to the clinical definition of IAI. These definitions were based on the criteria described by Pro-Implant Foundation criteria for IAI after fracture fixation or prosthetic joint infection. If no criteria were described in the literature for a specific IAI then MSIS criteria were used.Aim
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