For broth microdilution susceptibility tests of Francisella tularensis, Mueller-Hinton broth with 2% Isovitalex is recommended. Using that medium, we studied three standard control strains tested with nine antimicrobial agents potentially efficacious for treating tularemia. An eight-laboratory collaborative study generated the data needed to propose appropriate MIC control limits.

The in vitro inhibitory activity of trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole is inversely related to the amount of thymine and thymidine in the test medium; manufacturers must adequately control their media to avoid spurious antimicrobial susceptibility results. No differences were observed when commercial Mueller-Hinton broth and agar were compared with a semisynthetic broth medium by the use of microdil...

With rapid emergence of multidrug-resistant bacteria, there is often a need to perform susceptibility testing for less commonly used or newer antimicrobial agents. Such testing can often be performed only by using labor-intensive, manual dilution methods and lies outside the capacity of most clinical labs, necessitating reference laboratory testing and thereby delaying the availability of susce...

We determined the patterns of antimicrobial susceptibility of 65 isolates of Bacillus anthracis (50 historical and 15 recent U.S. clinical isolates) to nine antimicrobial agents using the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards (NCCLS) broth microdilution reference method. The results for the 50 historical B. anthracis isolates obtained by the broth microdilution method were compar...

While standardized microdilution testing methodologies and quality control ranges exist for the novel glycolipopeptide dalbavancin, no testing methods have been described that are immediately available for routine use in clinical laboratories. In this study, we found that the dalbavancin Etest (AB BIODISK, Solna, Sweden) procedure demonstrated a high degree of agreement (100% within +/-2 log(2)...

The antimicrobial property of volatile aromatic oils from medicinal as well as other edible plants has been recognized since antiquity. Candida species are an important cause of opportunistic infections in the oral cavity of immunocompromised patients and vaginal candidiasis. The antifungal activity of the essential oil of Pimento dioica (allspice oil) was investigated against 75 clinical isola...

The antimicrobial property of volatile aromatic oils from medicinal as well as other edible plants has been recognized since antiquity. Candida species are an important cause of opportunistic infections in the oral cavity of immunocompromised patients and vaginal candidiasis. The antifungal activity of the essential oil of Cinnamomum cassia (cassia oil) was investigated against 75 clinical isol...