The new edition of the American Society for Microbiology's manual, ostensibly geared for clinical microbiologists, is an ambitious, comprehensive tome. It is packed with concentrated information covering bacteria, fungi, viruses, mycoplasmas, rickettsiae, and chlamydiae. Parasitology and immunology are also included, to make it a volume of 96 chapters and 970 pages. The 125 contributors are all laboratory-based and all are authorities in the field of their presentation.
Useful listings of the types of specimens required for diagnostic tests that are now available are included. Practical techniques for the recognition and isolation of the various infectious agents and parasites, as well as serologic methods, are described. A section on the control of hospital-associated infections contains information on surveillance, germicides, and disinfectants. The chapter on the hepatitis viruses is particularly timely because of the current increase in hepatitis associated with hospitalized patients and personnel. Low concentrations of HB antigen can occasionally be