MICbestämning

MICbestämning is a Swedish term that translates to "MIC determination" or "MIC measurement." MIC stands for Minimum Inhibitory Concentration. This is a fundamental concept in microbiology and is used to quantify the susceptibility of a microorganism to an antimicrobial substance, such as an antibiotic.

The MIC is the lowest concentration of an antimicrobial agent that visibly inhibits the growth of a microorganism after overnight incubation. It is determined through a standardized laboratory procedure. Typically, this involves serial dilutions of the antimicrobial agent in a liquid or solid growth medium. A known concentration of the microorganism is then added to each dilution. After incubation, the tubes or agar plates are examined for visible growth. The MIC is identified as the lowest concentration where no growth is observed.

MIC determination is crucial for several reasons. In clinical settings, it helps guide antibiotic therapy by indicating which antibiotic is most likely to be effective against a particular bacterial or fungal infection. This prevents the use of ineffective drugs, which can lead to treatment failure and contribute to the development of antimicrobial resistance. In research, MIC values are used to evaluate the efficacy of new antimicrobial agents and to study mechanisms of resistance. The results are typically reported in units of concentration, such as micrograms per milliliter (µg/mL).