Microbiological Assessment of the FilmArray Blood Culture Identification 2 Panel: Potential Impact in Critically Ill Patients

Rapid pathogen detection and characterization from positive blood cultures are crucial in the management of patients with bloodstream infections (BSI) and in achieving their improved outcomes. In this context, the FilmArray Blood Culture Identification (BCID2) panel is an FDA approved molecular test, which can quickly identify different species and resistance determinants, thus making an impact in antimicrobial practice. In this study, we analyzed 136 positive blood cultures collected from septic critically ill patients from April 2021 to March 2023 by using the FilmArray BCID2 panel, and results obtained by fast molecular analysis were compared to those obtained by routine protocols. Overall, the BCID2 panel showed a strong concordance with conventional methods, particularly in the case of monomicrobial samples, whereas some discrepancies were found in 10/32 polymicrobial samples. Of note, this technique allowed us to identify a significant number of yeasts (37/94 samples) and to unravel the presence of several resistance markers, including both Gram-positive and Gram-negative organisms. These findings strongly support the potential use of the BCID2 panel as an adjunct to the conventional microbiology methods for the management of critically ill septic patients, thus accelerating blood pathogen and resistance genes identification, focusing antibiotic therapy, and avoiding inappropriate and excessive use of drugs.