Category Archive: Clinical Microbiology

A recent paper challenge scenario sent to our clinical bacteriology program participants presented a case of contaminated blood agar plates with beta hemolytic colonies that showed small Gram-positive bacilli when observed in a Gram stain. Participants were offered a series of…

In January 2023 the British Columbia Ministry of Health under the Laboratory Services Act approved a pathogen multiplex panel fee code item to encourage diagnostic microbiology laboratories to move towards syndromic testing.In response to this change in the diagnostic approach,…

Surveillance is a key factor in the management of and response to antimicrobial resistance. Determining which microbes are resistant to what antimicrobial agents, how widespread those strains are, and which are causing the most problems enables the prioritization of research…

Since January 18th, there have been two recalls due to Salmonella spp.: one in domestically produced eggs, and the other in imported mini pastries. So far, it’s unclear whether anyone has been affected by recalled eggs, but 1600 people are…

Vancouver, Toronto, and Edmonton have all had outbreaks of infectious diarrhea lately, many of them caused by infections with Shigella species. One of the most common causes of dysentery, Shigella infections, cause gastrointestinal symptoms including severe diarrhea, and are easily…

In response of the need of laboratories that only monitor blood cultures for positivity, CMPT has created a blood culture only program. This program satisfies accreditation needs by sending 2 blood culture samples for testing twice a year. The program…

What if testing for bacteria in fluids was a fast and easy as detecting viruses with a rapid antigen test? Researchers at McMaster University have come up with a novel test for detecting bacteria in a fluid sample that is…

Before the discovery of antibiotics in the 1930’s, there was an effort to treat bacterial infections using bacteriophages. Bacteriophages are viruses that infect bacteria, and they occur naturally wherever bacteria are found, from lakes and streams to the microbiomes inside…

Once called “consumption,” the disease we now refer to as tuberculosis was at one time romanticized as an artists’ disease and was thought to bring about a noble death. Quickly, however, as treatments were developed, tuberculosis became a disease of…

In October, a multi-state outbreak of enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC), or E. coli 0157:H7 was reported by the CDC related to McDonald’s quarter pound burgers. Initial testing indicated that the likely culprits were the beef patties or the slivered onions…