Diarrhea is a condition that can cause sufferers to experience increased defecation activity at least three times a day with a soft stool texture. Diarrhea is one of the causes of high morbidity and mortality rates in children under five, which is known as the second most common cause of death after pneumonia. Diarrhea cases occur due to bacterial, viral, and parasitic infections that disrupt the digestive system. One of the parasites that causes diarrhea with the highest incidence is caused by Blastocystis hominis. The diagnosis of Blastocystis hominis infection can be made through microscopic examination. Microscopic examination using the culture method has so far been carried out by modifying the stock solution using various sera, one of which is using horse serum. However, this method is still considered ineffective because it still has several weaknesses, including the price being quite high, difficult to obtain, and can damage cells so it is not good for use in growing cells.
Due to these problems, the Undiksha PKM-RE team consisting of Kadek Edy Sukarma (Medicine), Putu Sathiya Adi Janendra (Medicine), Kadek Intan Arta Sarita (Medicine), Kadek Indira Maheswari (Medicine), and Sang Nyoman Putra Darma (Education Biology) under the guidance of Dr. Made Bayu Permasutha, S.Ked., M.Biomed created an innovation entitled “Potency of Fetal Bovine Serum in Modified Jones Culture Medium as a Diagnostic Test Modality for Blastocystis hominis”. This innovation aims to determine the best method for detecting Blastocystis hominis using fetal bovine serum in a modified Jones culture medium during microscopic examination of the feces of patients suffering from diarrhea so that they can determine the cause and appropriate management in this case.
This activity was carried out for 4 months from July to October 2023, starting from designing and implementing the research to the culture process and microscopic examination of the feces of patients who had diarrhea. Clinically, based on the results of detection tests, morphological tests, and diagnostic tests, the use of fetal bovine serum in modified Jones culture medium has been effective because it can show optimal growth of Blastocystis hominis at several treatment concentrations and has excellent sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy values. With this innovation, it is hoped that it can have a positive impact and contribution to the continuity of future research, especially on methods for diagnosing a disease so that accurate results and appropriate management of patients are obtained. (rls)
