Current issues and problems in dealing with anaerobes in the clinical laboratory

Because of the current concern for health care reform and the demands placed in the clinical microbiology laboratory by decreased resources, questions regarding appropriate work-up of anaerobes remains unresolved. Although anaerobes are ubiquitous, the number of anaerobes causing disease is relatively few. This article focuses on the need for isolation and identification of these anaerobes and emphasizes proper collection, culture, and identification techniques. Varying levels of expertise in isolation and identification of anaerobes are proposed, and the role of "rapid" identification kits in identification of these organisms is discussed.