Diagnostics and categories of patients.

Care in identifying and categorizing patients is a critical first step in proper drug evaluation. The appropriate diagnostic tests include culture and urinalysis. They are essential for the firm establishment of a diagnosis and should be sensitive and specific enough to meet the appropriate clinical requirements. The clinical categories outlined are encountered in clinical practice with a frequency that is sufficient to provide enough patients for an assessment of the response to antimicrobial therapy and to give information that will have practical value for clinicians.