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Comparative Study of Agar Diffusion Test and the NCCLS Macrobroth Method for In Vitro Susceptibility Testing of Candida spp.

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Abstract

We performed a prospective double-blind study to evaluate the correlation between inhibition zones obtained by a disk-diffusion test, using Neo-sensitabs of fluconazole (Rosco Diagnostica), and the MICs generated by the NCCLS macrobroth dilution assay. Eighty clinical isolates, representing 5 of the clinically relevant species of Candida, were tested simultaneously by both methods. A clear inverse correlation was found between the results obtained by both tests (r = −0.69). In addition, there was high degree of agreement between methods in the identification of susceptible isolates. However, the resistance definition by disk-diffusion test had a positive predictive value of only 17%. Our data support the hypothesis that Rosco Fluconazole Neo-sensitabs have potential as a screening test for the identification of Candida isolates susceptible to fluconazole. Resistant isolates should be further investigated by standardized broth procedures.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Infectious Diseases, Escola Paulista de Medicina – UNIFESP, São Paulo, Brazil

    Luciana Maria Faiad Soni, Marcelo Nascimento Burattini, Antonio Carlos Campos Pignatari & Arnaldo Lopes Colombo

  2. Division of Cellular Biology, Escola Paulista de Medicina – UNIFESP, São Paulo, Brazil

    Olga Fischman Gompertz

Authors
  1. Luciana Maria Faiad Soni
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  2. Marcelo Nascimento Burattini
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  3. Antonio Carlos Campos Pignatari
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  4. Olga Fischman Gompertz
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  5. Arnaldo Lopes Colombo
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Soni, L.M.F., Burattini, M.N., Pignatari, A.C.C. et al. Comparative Study of Agar Diffusion Test and the NCCLS Macrobroth Method for In Vitro Susceptibility Testing of Candida spp.. Mycopathologia 145, 131–135 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1007068826861

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