Broth Culture Yield vs Traditional Approach in the Work-up of Endophthalmitis
Presented in part at the 4th International Conference on Ocular Infections, October 2005, Sapporo, Japan.
Accepted 25 January 2006. published online 03 March 2006.
Purpose
To elucidate whether the Bactec Peds Plus F broth traditionally used for culturing body fluids in pediatric departments can also be used for vitreous cultures in cases with clinically suspected endophthalmitis, and to compare yields between this method and the traditional method.
Design
Prospective, comparative clinical trial.
Methods
All consecutive cases with clinically suspected endophthalmitis treated in our institution between July 2003 and November 2005 were included in the study. All cases were cultured both in the Bactec Peds Plus F broth and using the traditional method.
Results
Thirteen cases were included in this study. The overall growth rate for the Bactec broth was 28.4% higher than the traditional method (69.2% and 53.9%, respectively, P = .48). In two cases, one of acute-onset postoperative endophthalmitis due to Streptococcus mitis and one of delayed-onset postoperative endophthalmitis attributable to Candida albicans, there was positive growth only in the Bactec broth.
Conclusions
The Bactec Peds Plus F broth can be used successfully in the examination of clinically suspected endophthalmitis. The method appears to have several advantages over the traditional method: time-savings, as only one medium needs to be inoculated, transportation to the laboratory is simpler as there is no need for immediate incubation, and there is no need to maintain a supply of fresh agar media. This method is especially suitable for office settings and remote clinics, but also can be used in hospital settings, as an adjunct, to increase the growth yield.
Department of Ophthalmology, Soroka University Medical Center, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, Israel
Inquiries to Assaf Kratz, MD, Department of Ophthalmology, Soroka University Medical Center, PO Box 151, Beer-Sheva 84101, Israel
ABSTRACT