Effect of calcium and magnesium ions on the susceptibility of Pseudomonas species to tetracycline, gentamicin polymyxin B, and carbenicillin.

The effect of calcium and magnesium on the susceptibility of 13 species of Pseudomonas to tetracycline, gentamicin, polymyxin B, and carbenicillin was measured. The majority of the minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of these antibiotics was increased if these cations were added to the test media. The increases in MICs caused by calcium or magnesium were similar, but the combination of both ions generally caused a greater change than either alone. Although the MIC of polymyxin B was most affected by calcium and magnesium, its interpretive susceptibilities (i.e., whether susceptible or resistant) were least changed. Susceptibility tests on Pseudomonas species probably should be done with Muller-Hinton broth supplemented with physiological concentrations of calcium and magnesium to better approximate the in vivo activity of these antibiotics. When the susceptibility tests were performed with Mueller-Hinton agar, the MICs were slightly less than those obtained with Mueller-Hinton broth supplemented with both cations but greater than those obtained with Mueller-Hinton broth supplemented with individual cations.