title: [Usefulness of a chromogenic selective agar for the identification of Bacillus cereus isolated from blood cultures].
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The incidence of Bacillus cereus bacteremia is increasing, but the identification of Bacillus species remains difficult. Brilliance Bacillus cereus agar (BBC agar; Oxoid, UK) is a new CHROMagar medium that allows selective isolation and identification of B. cereus; however, its clinical usefulness is seldom studied. We evaluated the usefulness of BBC agar to identify B. cereus isolates recovered from blood cultures.
  
  
  METHODS
  We analyzed a total of 53 blood isolates that showed a Bacillus-like morphology on Gram staining. All isolates were identified by using both the API Coryne (bioMérieux, France) and API 50CH/B (bioMérieux) systems. They were subsequently subcultured on BBC agar, incubated for 24 hr, and then examined for characteristic blue-green colonies. The clinical characteristics of patients whose isolates were identified as B. cereus were assessed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of the 53 isolates, 18 were identified as B. cereus by API 50CH/B. With the API 50CH/B system used as gold standard, the sensitivity and specificity for the identification of B. cereus were 100% (18/18) and 100% (35/35), respectively, using BBC agar, and 67% (12/18) and 100% (35/35), respectively, using the API Coryne system. Of the 18 patients with B. cereus bacteremia, 15 showed infectious signs, and 3 had more than 2 blood cultures positive for B. cereus on separate days.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study shows, for the first time, that BBC agar, with its good agreement and ease of use, is a valuable alternative to the API 50CH/B system for the presumptive identification of B. cereus isolates from blood cultures.
authors.affiliation: Department of Laboratory Medicine, Chonnam National University Medical School, Gwangju, Korea.
authors.forename: Eun Sun
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Jeong
authors.forename: Jong Hee
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Shin
authors.forename: Myung Geun
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Shin
authors.forename: Soon Pal
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Suh
authors.forename: Dong Wook
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Ryang
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000362:Agar / Q000737:chemistry; D000368:Aged; D001409:Bacillus cereus / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D016470:Bacteremia / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000382:microbiology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002863:Chromogenic Compounds / Q000737:chemistry*; D003470:Culture Media; D005260:Female; D016908:Gram-Positive Bacterial Infections / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000382:microbiology; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011933:Reagent Kits, Diagnostic; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
chemical_list: D002863:Chromogenic Compounds; D003470:Culture Media; D011933:Reagent Kits, Diagnostic; D000362:Agar