Evaluation of a new agar in Uricult-Trio for rapid detection of Escherichia coli in urine.

A new commercial agar (Uricult-Trio) with 8-hydroxyquinoline-beta-glucuronide was used to assess 2,536 uropathogens for beta-glucuronidase activity typical of Escherichia coli. Included in the study were 1,807 strains of the family Enterobacteriaceae, 284 strains of nonfermentative bacilli, 345 strains of gram-positive cocci, and 100 yeast strains. In identifying E. coli, the test agar gave a sensitivity of 95.5% and a specificity of 97.2%. Fifty E. coli isolates gave negative reactions; 31 non-E. coli strains produced black colonies characteristic of E. coli. No growth of gram-positive cocci and no false-positive reactions from yeasts were observed. The recovery rate for E. coli on this agar was at least 10% higher than that on blood agar.