Abnormal vaginal discharge is one of the frequent complaints of women of reproductive age group. This study was carried out to determine the prevalence of vulvovaginal candidiasis(VVC) among the patients attending the tertiary care hospital with complaints of suggestive of vaginitis. This study was done in a tertiary care hospital, Chennai for a period of 1 year from January 2017 to December 2017. The study included 160 women of the age group 15 -65 years with complaints suggestive of vaginitis. High vaginal swabs were taken and subjected to direct microscopy, cultured onto Sabouraud Dextrose Agar (SDA) and Hichrome Candida differential agar. Candida species were determined by standard microbiological methods and the results were confirmed by automated VITEK2 compact. Candida species were isolated from 56 patients which included C.albicans (25), C.tropicalis (20), C.glabrata (6), C.parapsilosis(4), C.krusei(1). Our study shows higher prevalence of non albicans Candida causing VVC. Hence, we recommend that the investigations up to species identification of Candida may be routinely followed in the microbiology laboratories.

Journal homepage: http://www.ijcmas.com Non-fermenting gram negative bacilli (NFGNB) are known to account for nearly 12-16% all bacterial isolates from a clinical microbiology laboratory. The most common infections caused by these organisms were septicemia, pneumonia, urinary tract infections, surgical site infections, wound infections, osteomyelitis, etc. As multidrug resistances being very common and increasing among NFGNB and Pseudomonas and Acinetobacter being the most predominantly isolated NFGNB and its resistance towards colistin and imepenam type of antimicrobials is of major concern. To isolate, identify and characterize the prevalence of NFGNB along with their antimicrobial sensitivity pattern among the patients attending a tertiary care centre in Tamilnadu. A prospective study was conducted in our hospital for a period of two years from Jan2012 to Dec 2013. A total of 5052 clinical specimens were received during the above said period. Out of this 1699 were urine specimens, 315 were pus, 988 blood, 1470 respiratory samples which includes sputum and tracheal secretions, and 580 were other than the above mentioned samples (body fluids, stool, tissue biopsy, vaginal swabs etc). The isolates that showed non lactose fermenting (NLF) colonies on Mac conkey agar and failed to acidify the butts of triple sugar iron (TSI) agar were provisionally considered as NFGNB. Antimicrobial sensitivity was determined by Kirby Bauer disc diffusion method on Muller Hinton agar (MHA). Antibiotic discs were placed and plates were incubated at 37°C for 18-24 hrs. Results were interpreted in accordance with central laboratory standards institute (CLSI) guidelines. In our study out of 5052 clinical samples 517 samples had shown positive for non-fermenting gram negative bacilli with a prevalence of 10.2%. Pseudomonas aeruginosa (53.9%) was found to be the most common organism isolated from the clinical samples followed by Acinetobacter baumanni (36.7%). The antibiotic sensitivity pattern varies for different clinical samples but colisitin and imipenam had shown the maximum sensitivity pattern for all the clinical samples. The sensitivity pattern for gentamicin, ceftazidime and ciprofloxacin was in the range of 30 -70% which means highest resistance was seen with these antimicrobials. It is important to establish the clinical relevance of the isolated NFGB, before are considered as pathogens to avoid unnecessary usage of antibiotics and emergence of drug-resistant strains. K e y w o r d sNon-fermenting gram negative bacilli,

Introduction: Critically ill Intensive care unit (ICU) patients are most vulnerable for developing respiratory and urinary tract infections especially who are mechanically ventilated due to complex interplay between the endotracheal tube, host immunity and virulence of invading bacteria. The aim and objective of the study was to analyze the aerobic bacteria and their antibiotic sensitivity pattern isolated from endotracheal aspirates of ventilated patients in ICU. Materials and Methods: The prospective study was done with the endotracheal samples received in the Microbiology Laboratory in a tertiary care hospital in south India, over a period of one year. Samples were collected under sterile conditions from medical and surgical ICU patients who were ventilated for at least 48 hrs. The samples included endotracheal secretion and endotracheal tube tip which was processed as per microbiological standards. Results: A total of 41 samples from 41 patients were collected during the study period of one year. The two major reasons for admission were organophosphate poisoning and RTA with head injury. There was predominance of male patients with M: F ratio of 3:1 respectively. The organisms commonly isolated were Acinetobacter, Pseudomonas, and Staphylococcus aureus. Out of 41 isolates 21 were multi-drug resistant which implies that 50% of isolates are multidrug resistant. Conclusion:Regular periodic surveillance of microbial profile and susceptibility patterns of ventilated patients in ICU should be done to detect emerging resistant bacterial strains. To combat the high antimicrobial resistance, every center should adopt a strict hospital infection control policy which includes judicious use of antimicrobial agents, use of rational antibiotic therapy, education programs and hand hygiene.

Despite the availability of many antifungal drugs in clinical practice, the occurrence of antifungal drug resistance is on the rise. Since the antifungal susceptibility testing (AFST) is not done routinely in many of the microbiology laboratories, it is very difficult to determine which antifungal agent is very effective for a particular infection. There is a real need for precise, reproducible and extrapolative antifungal susceptibility testing methods to aid the therapeutic management. The practice of empirical treatment for fungal infections further promotes the emergence of resistant strains. The AFST practice would essentially help the clinicians in appropriate decision making. Although conventional AFST methods are somewhat cumbersome, many novel AFST methods are currently available in many laboratory settings which would provide a quicker result many times. In essence, the application of AFST along with identification of the fungus up to species level would definitely be very helpful in selecting the primary antifungal agents for treatment especially in difficult to manage and invasive fungal infections. This review will throw light on the various AFST methods available and their issues in the current practice.