SMI: Investigation of whooping cough
Types of specimen Cough plates are not recommended. Selective media It contains blood or charcoal or both, along with selective antibiotic supplements – penicillin, cefalexin or meticillin.It should be able to suppress other nasopharyngeal flora. Meticillin is the least inhibitory, and cefalexin is the most. Cefalexin is the drug of choice for selective media in…
Plesiomonas shigelloides
Plesiomonas shigelloides characteristics Plesiomonas shigelloides is a gram-negative bacillus that derived its name from the ancient Greek word plēsíon, which means “near” or “neighbour”, as it was considered near or related to the bacteria Aeromonas. It is mostly found in freshwater, estuarine, or brackish water environments. It can be found in animals living in these environments,…
How did I prepare for part 2 FRCPath?
One of our registrars passed part 2 recently. I asked him about his preparation. He kindly shared with me some useful tips which may help anyone preparing for part 2. What did you read? What I read was a mix of Here are the links to the resources mentioned Mandell, Douglas, and Bennett’s Principles and…
Hand hygiene
References 1.WHO: Hand Hygiene Improvement programmes (2017) 2.CDC: Reduction of Healthcare-Associated Infections by High Compliance with Hand Hygiene (2016) 3.Lydon et al.: ICU Hand Hygiene Compliance Systematic Review (2017) 4.Systematic review: ED Hand Hygiene Practices (2022) 5.WHO/UNICEF JMP: WASH in Health Care Facilities Report (2019) 6.CDC: Clinical Safety—Alcohol-Based Hand Sanitizers Guidance (2024) 7.Evidence-based practices to…
Rothia mucilaginosa
The Bacteria Rothia belongs to the family Micrococcaceae – the same family as Micrococcus spp., Stomatococcus spp. and Kocuria spp. There are 8 species of Rothia – but only Rothia dentocariosa and Rothia mucilaginosa has been associated with human disease. It is a member of the mouth and upper respiratory tract flora. Laboratory Infection Rothia…
Staphylococcus lugdunensis
Bacteria Staph lugdunensis is a coagulase-negative Staphylococcus (CoNS) capable of causing aggressive diseases like Staph aureus. Staph lugdunensis tends to be more susceptible to antibiotics compared to other CoNS. Vancomycin tolerance – can be present, i.e. the ability of bacteria to survive in the presence of an antibiotic, even if MIC testing has deemed that…
Microregistrar.moodlecloud.com
Microregistrar.moodlecloud.com is a moodle site where you can complete the most comprehensive collection of content for the FRCPath Microbiology examination. It has: Core module – Questions This group at present has >400 members from various parts of the world You can find a list of content in this spreadsheet – https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1XzlEPyzUM3ljxjzMrxpXLH-Pu_xTlWGC8AtrlRzp5Zw/edit?gid=1285796030#gid=1285796030 How to register for…
Legionella Control in Healthcare
What are the Laws underpinning the Legionella control? There is a hierarchy of laws guiding the Legionella control ACOP L8:2013 The responsibility lies with the owner of the premises or the employer (this person is called the “duty holder”). They must identify and assess the risk, prepare a written scheme to control the risk, implement…
Culture media and composition
This is a list of some culture media and their composition. MEDIA SUPPLEMENTS TARGET ORGANISMS ABC plates Alpha-galactosidase Salmonella sp. Alkaline peptone water [pH – 8.6 ± 0.2] NaCl, peptone Enrichment of Vibrio spp. Aztreonam Blood Agar Aztreonam, blood agar base Gram-positive, especially fastidious gram-positive organisms BHI Broths Calf brain and beef heart infusion solids, peptone…