African Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 4 (1), pp. 83-86, January 2005   

ISSN 1684–5315 © 2004 Academic Journals        

Full Length Research Paper

Pitfalls in the routine diagnosis of Staphylococcus aureus

C.S.S. BELLO and A. QAHTANI

Department of Clinical Microbiology and Parasitology, College of Medicine and Medical Sciences, King Khalid University, P.O. Box 641, Abha. Saudi Arabia.

*Corresponding author. E-mail:  cssbello@hotmail.com. 

Accepted 17 November, 2004

Two hundred isolates of Presumed Staphylococcus aureus from routine clinical specimens, collected from two government hospitals in Abha, Saudi Arabia, had their identity verified. We used the tube coagulase test as our gold standard. Twenty (10%) of the isolates were mis-identified. Reliance by the two laboratories on DNase test, Mannitol fermentation reaction and improper performance of the coagulase test, were responsible for the mis-diagnosis.

 Key words: Staphylococcus aureus, diagnosis, pitfalls.