Diagnostic advantage of droplet digital PCR over blood culture in sepsis: a retrospective study of 115 patients

Droplet digital polymerase chain reaction significantly outperformed blood culture in pathogen detection for sepsis, especially for Gram-negative and polymicrobial infections. Its high negative predictive value supports its use as a complementary tool to exclude bloodstream infections and guide early antimicrobial de-escalation. While positive findings must be interpreted with clinical context to avoid overtreatment, ddPCR offers substantial potential to accelerate pathogen identification, improve antimicrobial stewardship, and enhance outcomes in septic patients.