EPIDEMIOLOGIC TYPING OF COAGULASE-NEGATIVE STAPHYLOCOCCI

Coagulase-negative staphylococci are increasingly implicated as causes of septicemia, peritonitis, and endocarditis. Various methods of epidemiologic typing have been assessed, usually in combination. Biotyping and phage typing show poor discrimination or typability; antibiotic resistance typing is often helpful, but the newer electrophoretic methods including protein patterns, plasmid analysis, and restriction enzyme digestion are widely advocated. New methods include pyrolysis mass spectrometry, monoclonal antibodies, and susceptibility to desferrioxamine. Slime production was widely examined, but its significance remains unclear. A new phage set for Staphylococcus saprophyticus has been prepared.