Assessment of susceptibility testing practices for Streptococcus pneumoniae--United States, February 2000.

Streptococcus pneumoniae is the leading cause of community-acquired pneumonia, otitis media, and meningitis in the United States. Antimicrobial susceptibility results are important for guiding therapy decisions and monitoring emerging resistance patterns. Appropriate methods for pneumococcal susceptibility testing are recommended by the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards (NCCLS). Recommendations for pneumococcal susceptibility testing are reviewed annually and were the same in 2000 and 2001. To assess laboratory practices for Streptococcus pneumoniae susceptibility testing on sterile site isolates, in February 2000, CDC conducted a multistate survey of clinical laboratories. This report summarizes the survey results, which found that most practices of clinical laboratories were consistent with NCCLS recommendations; however, some inconsistencies were noted. As antimicrobial resistance in pneumococci continues to worsen, clinical laboratories should be aware of emerging resistance patterns and follow new recommendations to provide clinicians with precise information about antimicrobial susceptibility.