Biomerieux VITEK 2
Microbiology is the branch of the science of biology that deals with the study of microorganisms, which may be either unicellar or miniscule multicellar organisms.
The cells can be eukaryotic (containing a nucleus), as in unicellar fungi and protists, or prokaryotic (lacking a formed nucleus) as in bacteria and archaea.
The study field of microbiology also covers viruses.
Apart from the classical phenotypic methods, the arsenal of modern science now also includes advanced techniques that utilize the possibilities of molecular biology based on sequencing of DNA fragments and detecting the location and number of specific sequences on the microorganism’s chromosome (electrophoresis, PCR and other methods).
In our laboratory, we use both classical and modern methods in order to locate and identify pathogenic microorganisms and, of course, to determine the suitable manner to deal with them.
Thanks to our cooperation with accredited centers in Greece and abroad, we can use all technologies available today in the field of microbiology and virology.
The miconcerto is the latest proposal by bioMérieux, one of the leading companies in cutting edge microbiology for modern biopathological laboratories, integrating reagents, systems and services into a single product.
Built around the Vitek®2 Compact automated identification /antibiogram system, the miconcerto achieves:
faster results for the clinical physician (identification and antibiogram within 6 hours for common microbes)
maximum quality assurance of results (standardization with turbidimeter to check the turbidity of the suspension, checking of 20–40 antibiotics with MIC in 3-7 concentrations for the checking of resistance mechanisms, Advanced Expert System®)
flexibility (identification of Gram+, Gram-, fungi, fastidious bacteria, corynebacteria, campylobacters, anaerobic microbes, antibiogram with MIC for Gram+, Gram-, fungi)
user-friendly software with LIS / HIS connectivity
continuous updates of the software with antibiotic combinations and new resistances
DETERMINATION OF ANTIBIOGRAMS WITH MIC
GENERAL
The primary purpose of the antibiogram is to measure the susceptibility of a germ to the usual antibiotics. Secondary purpose is to detect the emerging resistance of microbial strains, which may be due to new resistance mechanisms.
WHAT IS AN ANTIBIOGRAM WITH MIC DETERMINATION?
The susceptibility of a germ that is isolated from a patient to a certain antibiotic is determined by measuring the minimal concentration of antibiotic that inhibits its growth in vitro. Thus, apart from the information whether the germ is susceptible to each antibiotic – which can also be obtained with a traditional antibiogram – MIC can also allows us (a) to select the most effective antibiotic and (b) to determine the therapeutic dosage. Moreover, with the modern MIC determination methods, testing for the most common bacteria takes approximately 6 hours, making the results more quickly available to the clinical physician.
What are the advantages of the MIC rapid antibiogram method?
The new methodologies for the determination of antibiograms with MIC provide standardized, quantitative results in shorter time for up to 20 antibiotics. Following the latest rules of international regulations, they also offer the possibility to detect resistance mechanisms that may not be expressed in Vitro, providing important information to the physician for the selection of the appropriate treatment for both common and rarer germs.
In our laboratory, the tests for the identification of germs, antibiogram and MIC determination are conducted with the state-of-the-art automatic analyzer VITEK 2 used by the majority of hospitals in the country.
