Journal of Clinical Microbiology, January 1999, p. 8-13, Vol. 37, No. 1
0095-1137/99/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1999, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.
Regional Lab for Public Health "Zeeland,
Received 22 June 1998/Returned for modification 9 July
1998/Accepted 9 September 1998
Over a 7-year period, we isolated 294 Actinomyces-like
organisms (ALOs) which were not clearly identifiable. Using
well-defined probes coding for sequences specific for recently
described Actinomyces species (A. turicensis,
A. radingae, and A. europaeus), we were able to
identify 128 strains. The majority belonged to the A. turicensis species. A. radingae was found only in
patients with skin-related pathologies. A. europaeus was
also detected in patients with urinary tract infections. The main
sources of A. turicensis were genital infections, followed
by skin-related and urinary tract infections. Additional clinical
pictures were appendicitis, cholecystitis, ear, nose, and throat
infections, and bacteremia. In a small number of patients these ALOs
were found as the only pathogen. Strains of the three species were
tested by two widely used biochemical identification methods. A. turicensis was easily identifiable by both these methods. We
conclude that these ALOs are not infrequent pathogens and are found in
a wide range of human infections. At least A. turicensis is
easily identifiable by clinical diagnostic laboratories.
*
Corresponding author. Mailing address: Stichting
Streeklaboratorium "Zeeland," POB 36, 4460 AA Goes, The
Netherlands. Phone: 31-113-216152. Fax: 31-113-233540. E-mail:
SSZGOES{at}ZEELANDNET.NL.
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