This document describes the standard broth (macrodilution and microdilution) and agar dilution methods
used to determine the in vitro susceptibility of bacteria that grow aerobically. It addresses preparation of
broth and agar dilution tests, testing conditions (including inoculum preparation and standardization,
incubation time, and incubation temperature), reporting of minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC)
results, quality control (QC) procedures, and limitations of the dilution test methods. To assist the clinical
laboratory, suggestions are provided on the selection of antimicrobial agents for routine testing and
reporting. Standards for testing the in vitro susceptibility of bacteria that grow aerobically using the
antimicrobial disk susceptibility testing method are found in CLSI document M025
; standards for testing
the in vitro susceptibility of bacteria that grow anaerobically are found in CLSI document M11.6
Guidelines for standardized susceptibility testing of infrequently isolated or fastidious bacteria that are not
included in CLSI documents M02,5
M07, or M116
are available in CLSI document M45.
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