Cost-effectiveness and efficacy of CHROMagar Candida medium in clinical specimens.

CHROMagar Candida is a new medium for the differential isolation and identification of certain clinically important Candida species. This study evaluated the cost-effectiveness of this medium compared with conventional methods. Thirty reference strains, 158 clinical specimens and 105 stock cultures were investigated. Specimens were cultured on CHROMagar Candida medium and on Sabouraud chloramphenicol agar. Identification was by conventional methods on Sabouraud agar and appearance of colonies on CHROMagar Candida medium. CHROMagar Candida correctly identified isolates of C. albicans, C. tropicalis and C. krusei. It was superior in detecting mixed cultures. A comparison of time and cost was carried out. CHROMagar Candida provides a simple, accurate and cost-effective method for identifying some clinically important Candida species.