title: Photorhabdus asymbiotica, a pathogen emerging on two continents that proves that there is no substitute for a well-trained clinical microbiologist.
abstract: A 54-year-old ranch hand presented to the emergency room with an alleged spider bite and multiple abscesses. Both wound and blood cultures grew Photorhabdus asymbiotica, an enteric gram-negative rod that was initially misidentified by the hospital's rapid identification system. Clinical laboratories should be aware of the limitations of their rapid identification systems and always use them as an adjunct to analysis of morphological and phenotypic traits.
authors.affiliation: Microbiology Specialists Incorporated, 8911 Interchange Drive, Houston, TX 77054. micro@microbiologyspecialists.com.
authors.forename: Alice S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Weissfeld
authors.forename: Rhonda J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Halliday
authors.forename: Dawn E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Simmons
authors.forename: Ernest A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Trevino
authors.forename: Paula H
authors.initials: PH
authors.lastname: Vance
authors.forename: Caroline M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: O'Hara
authors.forename: Evangeline G
authors.initials: EG
authors.lastname: Sowers
authors.forename: Rebecca
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kern
authors.forename: R Dudley
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Koy
authors.forename: Kathy
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hodde
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bing
authors.forename: Carson
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lo
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gerrard
authors.forename: Renu
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Vohra
authors.forename: Jacqueline
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Harper
mesh_terms: D003951:Diagnostic Errors; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020637:Photorhabdus / Q000187:drug effects / Q000302:isolation & purification*