title: Use of gas liquid chromatography as an adjunct to conventional bacteriological methods in the diagnosis of anaerobic cerebral abscess.
abstract: Forty cases of cerebral abscesses were studied prospectively to establish the microbial agents implicated in these cases. Chronic otitis media (14 patients, 35%), congenital heart disease (five patients, 12.5%),a and meningitis (five patients, 12.5%) were among the important predisposing factors. Streptococcus (14 patients, 35%) was the most common causative pre-isolated, the predominant species being Streptococcus milleri (11 patients, 27.5%). Other organisms isolated included Proteus mirabilis in six patients (15%) and Staphylococcus aureus in five patients (12.5%). Anaerobes (12 patients, 30%), predominantly Bacteroides sp. (eight patients, 20%), played an important role in these cases, the majority of which were isolated in mixed cultures. Gas-liquid chromatographic analysis of pus detected the presence of anaerobes in another 11 cases of cerebral abscess, in which cultures of anaerobes were negative. Therefore, gas-liquid chromotography is useful as an adjunct to conventional bacteriological methods in providing a rapid and sensitive means of detecting anaerobes in pus obtained especially from patients who had received antibiotic therapy prior to hospitalization.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Neurosurgical Unit, Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, National University of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, West Malaysia.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pit
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Jamal
authors.forename: F K
authors.initials: FK
authors.lastname: Cheah
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Abbas