As it has been required to identify pathogenic microbes in shorter times, simple and rapid methods have been developed and used. Here, we summarized the present situation of rapid diagnostic testing in clinical microbiology in Japan, and also presented our results on PBP2' detection. The rapid test kits available in Japan for E. coli, Helicobacter pylori, Salmonella, Streptococcus and Staphylococcus aureus were described. Rapid examination methods are based mainly on immunologic reactions, which included slide agglutination using latex particle, immunochromatography and ELISA. Times required for the identification are 10 to 15 minutes. Moreover, rapid test kits employing PCR are also marketed. Further, we evaluated MRSA-LA "Seiken" which is a rapid detection kit for PBP2' produced by MRSA. The test was shown to be highly sensitive and specific. For the rapid identification of pathogenic microbes, simple and rapid test kits described here will be used more in clinical diagnosis.

*1Department of Clinical Laboratory Medicine, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima 960-1247