Presenter:

• Sue Kehl, Ph.D., Associate Director of Clinical Pathology and Technical Director of Microbiology at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin, Associate Professor, Pathology at Medical College of Wisconsin

Description:

This session will present the clinical characteristics that differentiate atypical pneumonia from typical pneumonia.  The commonly encountered bacterial pathogens will be discussed as well as methods for their identification.  The performance characteristics of these tests will be presented.

 

Materials:

Webcast (Windows Media, 20 Kbps)

Powerpoint (1.54 MB)

Handout (PDF, 1.32 MB)

Presenter:

• Tom Wisniewski, M.S.RM (AAM) Microbiology Instructor, Milwaukee Area Technical College

Description:

This audio conference will review the clinical diseases and typical symptoms associated with infections caused by Haemophilus spp. and the other tiny gram negative coccobacilli included in the HACEK group of organisms.  The speaker will also discuss the organisms growth characteristics and offer suggestions for how to perform culture and identification for these organisms.

 

Materials:

Webcast (Windows Media, 20 Kbps)

Powerpoint (2.43 MB)

Handout (PDF, 518 KB)

Presenter:

• Carol Spiegel, MT (ASCP), Ph.D., D(ABMM), Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the UW School of Medicine and Public Health, and Director of the Clinical Microbiology Laboratory at UW Hospitals and Clinics in Madison

Description:

This presentation will provide guidance to laboratory professionals on the following:

• When should anaerobic cultures be performed?
• What specimens are appropriate for anaerobic culture?
• How far do we need to go in identifying and performing susceptibility testing of anaerobic organisms?
• What identification and susceptibility testing methods are available?
• How should cultures be reported?

 

Materials:

Webcast (Windows Media, 20 Kbps)

PowerPoint (1.14 MB)

Handout (PDF, 620 KB)

Presenter:

• Raymond Podzorski, Ph.D., D(ABMM), Clinical Microbiologist, Department of Pathology, ProHealth Care Laboratories, Waukesha

Description:

The basics of C. difficile and C. difficile infection will be discussed followed by an introduction to the test systems that are currently available for C. difficile toxin testing.  Various C. difficile toxin testing algorithms that have been proposed will be presented and their strengths and weaknesses will be discussed as well as what types of specimens are acceptable for C. difficile toxin testing.

 

Materials:

Webcast (Windows Media, 20 Kbps)

PowerPoint (5.38 MB)

Handout (PDF, 2.29 MB)

Presenter:

• Erik Munson, Ph.D., Technical Director, Wheaton Franciscan Laboratory

Description:

This two-part series attempts to provide a foundation in molecular biology theory and introductory techniques in preparation for the WSLH sponsored Molecular Workshop in the spring of 2011.

 

Materials:

Webcast (Windows Media, 20 Kbps)

PowerPoint (5.19 MB)

Handout (PDF, 1.23 MB)

Presenter:

• Erik Munson, Ph.D., Technical Director, Wheaton Franciscan Laboratory

Description:

This two-part series attempts to provide a foundation in molecular biology theory and introductory techniques in preparation for the WSLH sponsored Molecular Workshop in the spring of 2011.

 

Materials:

Webcast (Windows Media, 20 Kbps)

Presentation (PDF)

Handout (PDF, 1 MB)

Presenters:

• Pete Shult, Ph.D., Director of the Communicable Diseases Division, Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene
• Erik Reisdorf, MPH, M (ASCP) CM, Virology Laboratory-Team Leader, Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene

Description:

This audioconference will provide updated information about rotavirus and other viral causes of acute gastroenteritis (AGE), the public health impact of the rotavirus vaccination program, current trends in Wisconsin & globally, and the importance of public health surveillance to detect novel and emerging strains of viruses causing acute gastroenteritis.

 

Materials:

Webcast (Windows Media, 20 Kbps)

PowerPoint (3.96 MB)

Handout (PDF, 1.14 MB)

Presenter:

• Tim Monson, M.S., Laboratory Coordinator, Foodborne Diseases, Communicable Disease Division, Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene

Description:

Detection of Shiga toxins and Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) is becoming a routine part of the stool specimen work-up in the clinical laboratory. Recent national recommendations have guided laboratories to not limit STEC diagnosis to E. coli O157:H7 alone. Prompt reporting of Shiga toxin-positive test results to the health care provider are critical to patient management and disease outcome. Efforts of Wisconsin clinical laboratories to expand their routine testing for STEC to include non-O157 E. coli will be discussed along with the recent recommendations and justification for routine STEC testing that have been published. The Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene (WSLH) will present data from recent years on STEC isolates recovered from Shiga toxin-positive stool specimens, compare it to national data and discuss its significance. Finally, efforts to expand state-wide Shiga toxin testing and improve STEC surveillance in 2011 and beyond will be discussed.

 

Materials:

Webcast (Windows Media, 20 Kbps)

PowerPoint slides (2.78 MB)

Handout (PDF, 495 KB)

Presenter:

• David Warshauer, Ph.D. D(ABMM), Deputy Director, Communicable Disease Division, Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene

Description:

This presentation will provide laboratory professionals with guidance for reading and interpreting the CLSI document M100-S20: Performance Standards for Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing.  Participants will be introduced to other CLSI documents pertaining to susceptibility testing and some of the changes introduced in 2010.

 

Materials:

Presentation (Powerpoint, 1.93 MB)

Presentation Handout (PDF, 897 KB)

Presenter:

• Erik Munson, Ph.D., Technical Director, Wheaton Franciscan Laboratory

Description:

This two-part series seeks to provide laboratory professionals with baseline knowledge of antimicrobial agent classification, mechanisms of action, and resistance mechanisms.   Clinically significant pathogens will serve as the basis for discussion.  This two-part audioconference series is recommended as preparatory material for the WSLH sponsored Antimicrobial Susceptibility Workshop in May of 2010.

 

Materials:

Webcast (Windows Media, 20 Kbps)

Presentation (PDF, 1.3 MB)

Presentation Handout (PDF, 982 KB)