The Etest Performed Directly on Blood Culture Bottles Is a Reliable Tool for Detection of Fluconazole-Resistant Candida albicans Isolates

Abstract

We assessed the ability of the Etest performed directly on positive blood cultures (ET_DIR) to detect fluconazole susceptibility in 6 fluconazole-resistant and 12 fluconazole-susceptible Candida albicans isolates, according to CLSI M27-A3 and EUCAST EDef 7.2 procedures. Categorical agreement between ET_DIR and broth microdilution was 100% when the trays were incubated at 25°C and trailing effect was ruled out. ET_DIR is a reliable procedure when screening for the presence of fluconazole resistance in C. albicans.

Keywords: Candida albicans; Etest; fluconazole; resistance.