[Detection of Brucella with an automatic hemoculture system: Bact/Alert].
BACKGROUND
The ability of in vitro and in vivo detection of Brucella spp. with the Bact/Alert system was studied.


METHODS
Three strains of Brucella melitensis and two of Brucella abortus were used. Different dilutions of the five strains were performed in trypticase soy broth (TSB), achieving concentrations of 1 cfu/ml, 5 cfu/ml, 10 cfu/ml and 100 cfu/ml. Ten ml of each dilution and strain were inoculated into 5 aerobic bottles Bact/Alert and 5 biphasic Hemóline bottles. Furthermore, over a 9 month period, 8,216 bottles of Bact/Alert bottles from hospitalized patients and from the emergency department were processed in the authors' laboratory.


RESULTS
The mean detection time for Brucella growth was from 2 to 3 days with the Bact/Alert system, and 14 days in the biphasic bottles. Former bottles processed in the authors' laboratory, 11 aerobic bottles belonged to 5 patients in whom brucelosis was confirmed by bloodculture. The Bact/Alert system detected Brucella melitensis in only on bottle at 2.9 days of incubation. In 7 bottles Bact/Alert detected B. melitensis by a blind pass of these bottles at 10 to 20 days of incubation.


CONCLUSIONS
These results suggest that the Bact/Alert system does not totally solve the diagnosis of brucellosis. Blind passes of the bloodcultures are required.
Casas
J
J
Servicio de Microbiología, Hospital Virgen de las Nieves, Granada.
Partal
Y
Y
Llosá
J
J
Leiva
J
J
Navarro
J M
JM
de la Rosa
M
M
D001431:Bacteriological Techniques; D001769:Blood / Q000382:microbiology*; D002002:Brucella / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D002006:Brucellosis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000382:microbiology; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D006801:Humans
Detección de Brucella por un sistema automático de hemocultivos: Bact/Alert.