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College of Veterinary Medicine

Valued clients:

The ADDL Bacteriology Laboratory has been impacted by a supply chain shortage affecting materials used for antimicrobial susceptibility testing. As a result of this shortage, we must rely on our current, limited, stock of testing supplies for the foreseeable future. We are temporarily implementing the following protocols to allow optimal use of our existing supplies:

  • Mixed cultures (>2 organisms) will not receive susceptibility testing unless one pathogen or potential pathogen is present in predominant growth.
  • Isolates from sites with robust normal flora (e.g. nasal, enteric and lower urogenital tract) will not receive susceptibility testing unless the isolate is a known pathogen in that site and present in predominant growth.
  • Isolates from cutaneous abscesses will not receive susceptibility testing as abscess drainage is more effective than antibiotic treatment.
  • Skin cultures will receive susceptibility testing only on a single predominant organism, if present; we encourage submitters to leverage antiseptic and topical treatment of skin cases as much as possible (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/vde.13342).
  • Otitis externa samples will not receive susceptibility testing, as otitis externa is most effectively treated with topical cleaning, and antimicrobials and systemic antibiotics do not distribute to the external ear. Otitis media and interna samples (myringotomy/ tympanocentesis) will receive susceptibility testing (https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6294027/).

Thank you for your patience and understanding as we temporarily alter our practices to best serve critically ill animals. If you have concerns about a particular isolate not receiving susceptibility testing, please contact the lab at 765-494-7440. All isolates will continue to be identified as usual, and isolates can be frozen for later testing upon request.

Many thanks,

 

Rachel C. Soltys, DVM, PhD, DACVM
Bacteriology Section Head | Clinical Assistant Professor
Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory (ADDL)

406 S. University St.
West Lafayette, IN 47907

o: 765-494-7440