This report on EQA performance shows that European Reference Laboratories for Meningococci differ in their capacities and the level of characterisation of the distributed N. meningitidis material, but that there have been improvements since the first ECDC IBD-labnet distribution.
According to this report, the use of rapid molecular assays has diagnostic value in tuberculosis (TB) identification and detection of drug resistance, although there is not enough evidence to recommend these tools in all populations and situations and they should not replace standard diagnostic methods.