Polymerase chain reaction-guided diagnosis of infective keratitis - a hospital-based study.

Purpose: To compare polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to microbial culture and smear for detection and identification of bacterial and fungal pathogens in suspected microbial keratitis.

Materials And Methods: Corneal scrapings from 88 patients with suspected infectious keratitis were subjected to routine bacterial culture and sensitivity, Gram's stain, fungal culture; potassium hydroxide (KOH) wet mount, and PCR. PCR was performed with primer pairs targeted to the 16S and 18S r RNA gene.

High rates of intestinal colonization with extended-spectrum lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae among healthy individuals.

Background: Infections caused by extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing bacteria become an emerging problem in the community setting in many parts of the world.

Objective: The objective of the study was to determine fecal carriage of ESBL-producing organisms in a community setting.

Methods: A total of 632 fecal specimens from healthy individuals were screened for ESBL using the agar screening test with MacConkey agar plates supplemented with 1 μg/mL of cefotaxime for selection of ESBL-producing strains and confirmed by the Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute combined disk method.