Should organisms (e.g., Treponema spp., Corynebacteria spp.) identified through molecular or genetic testing be treated the same as the pathogens isolated by culture?

Because of their associated poor clinical outcomes, unusual organisms resulting in infection should not be treated equivalently to a usual pathogenic organism. Identification of unusual organisms through molecular and genetic techniques should help aid in antibiotic selection in conjunction with surgery, as indicated. Because of the associated poor clinical outcomes of unusual organisms and polymicrobial infections, the results of these newer techniques should not be ignored, but instead used to help inform therapeutic choices.