[Our experiences with Actinomyces urogenitalis in human clinical samples]

Actinomyces urogenitalis is most commonly associated with the human genitourinary system, often only as the resident flora. Outside the genitourinary tract, A. urogenitalis is isolated rather sporadically. Presented are two brief case reports of human infections outside the genitourinary tract as well as experiences with microbiological identification of this actinomycete. Antibiotic susceptibility testing of actinomycetes is focused especially on their resistance to lincosamides and fluoroquinolones. The etiological relationship with the patients' clinical problems was not investigated. Previously reported cases of infections outside the genitourinary tract are also mentioned in the article. The article may aid in expanding the knowledge of the occurrence, diagnosis and susceptibility of A. urogenitalis to antibiotics, particularly in rarely reported extra-genitourinary infections caused by this species. Accurate species identification in routine laboratory practice is important both for determination of the etiological role of the microorganism and for more precise selection of empirical antibiotic therapy.