r-b Expanders: their use in identifying routinely and unusually reacting members of Enterobacteriaceae.

This cooperative study between a large clinical laboratory and a reference laboratory evaluated the performance of the expanded r/b system for identifying Enterobacteriaceae. The 2,200 cultures isolated in the normal hospital routine presented no problem of identification to the r/b system. About 250 "atypical" cultures which were exchanged between the collaborating laboratories were also identified accurately. The expanded r/b system was found to perform as well as most biochemical-physiological identification systems, and when used appropriately was highly satisfactory as a system for identification of Enterobacteriaceae.