# Validation of CRownLab Pneumoplex for the Detection of Klebsiella pneumoniae and Acinetobacter baumannii Using RT‐PCR in Patients With Sepsis at a Tertiary Hospital in Indonesia

## TL;DR

This study evaluates a new RT-PCR test for detecting two dangerous bacteria in sepsis patients, showing it works well for one but less so for the other.

## Contribution

Validates CRownLab Pneumoplex RT-PCR for detecting Klebsiella pneumoniae and Acinetobacter baumannii in sepsis patients in Indonesia.

## Key findings

- RT-PCR showed high sensitivity and accuracy for Klebsiella pneumoniae detection.
- Acinetobacter baumannii detection had moderate PPV but high NPV.
- Sputum specimens showed good diagnostic performance for sepsis patients.

## Abstract

Early diagnosis of bacterial sepsis remains a significant challenge in clinical practice, primarily due to the limitations of conventional methods such as blood culture, which require prolonged turnaround times and have low sensitivity. The real‐time polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR) method using CRownLab Pneumoplex was developed to enable rapid and simultaneous detection of pathogens. This study is aimed at evaluating the diagnostic validity of CRownLab Pneumoplex in detecting Klebsiella pneumoniae and Acinetobacter baumannii in patients with sepsis at a tertiary hospital in Indonesia.

This cross‐sectional study involved 400 sepsis patients recruited between October 2024 and February 2025. Blood, sputum, urine, and pus specimens were collected from patients who met the inclusion and exclusion criteria. All samples were analyzed using culture methods as the gold standard and RT‐PCR using CRownLab Pneumoplex. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), and diagnostic accuracy were calculated.

RT‐PCR detection of K. pneumoniae demonstrated a sensitivity of 89.0%, specificity of 87.7%, PPV of 65.2%, NPV of 96.9%, and accuracy of 88.0%. For A. baumannii, sensitivity was 92.9%, specificity was 88.9%, PPV was 23.2%, NPV was 99.7%, and accuracy was 89.0%. Overall, combined detection yielded a sensitivity of 88.9%, specificity of 87.0%, PPV of 69.3%, NPV of 96.0%, and diagnostic accuracy of 87.5%. For sputum specimens, sensitivity was 73.5%, specificity was 96.9%, PPV was 98.9%, NPV was 50.0%, and accuracy was 78.5%. The mortality rate among sepsis patients in this study was 69.5%.

The RT‐PCR method using CRownLab Pneumoplex demonstrated high diagnostic validity for the detection of K. pneumoniae but only moderate reliability for A. baumannii. For sputum specimens, the RT‐PCR method showed good diagnostic performance in patients with sepsis and respiratory infections.