Clinical microbiology

The clinical microbiology laboratory relies on traditional diagnostic methods such as culturing, Gram stains, and biochemical testing. Receipt of a high-quality specimen with an appropriate test order is integral to accurate testing. Recent technological advancements have led to decreased time to results and improved diagnostic accuracy. Examples of advancements discussed in this chapter include automation of bacterial culture processing and incubation, as well as introduction of mass spectrometry for the proteomic identification of microorganisms. In addition, molecular testing is increasingly common in the clinical laboratory. Commercially available multiplex molecular assays simultaneously test for a broad array of syndromic-related pathogens, providing rapid and sensitive diagnostic results. Molecular advancements have also transformed point-of-care (POC) microbiology testing, and molecular POC assays may largely supplant traditional rapid antigen testing in the future. Integration of new technologies with traditional testing methods has led to improved quality and value in the clinical microbiology laboratory.