Chapter 13 : Did I Choose Clinical Microbiology or Did It Choose Me?

Abstract:

On discharge from the military, the author enrolled in the graduate school of Syracuse University because he was interested in fermentation and industrial microbiology, which were major interests of the microbiology department there. The author’s interest stemmed from his observations of the use of penicillin in the miraculously successful treatment of serious bacterial infections in the military and civilian population in France, Germany, and elsewhere. His research interests were broad rather than focused on one disease or one organism or group of organisms. The author's research work showed that group B phemolytic streptococci were capable of producing serious systemic disease in children and postpartum women. He was also interested in systemic fungal diseases that were peculiar to the geographical area. Two such diseases were histoplasmosis and blastomycosis- both endemic to the Missouri Valley. The presence of Histoplasma capsulatum was confirmed in hen house droppings and soil. The author and his research team also showed that blastomycosis occurs frequently in dogs that may have transmitted the infection to humans by contact, but they were unable to prove conclusively that soil is the natural habitat of Blastomyces dermatitidis. During the early 1960s, the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards (NCCLS) became prominent. It was a direct outgrowth of the collective recognition for standardization in clinical laboratories.