this study evaluates the chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of essential oils of tetraclinis articulata (vahl) masters from algeria. the essential oils of fresh and dried leaves were analyzed by gc-fid and gc-ms, identifying sixty-two and fifty-four volatile compounds representing 88% and 98% of the total essential oil composition, respectively. the main compounds of t. articulata essential leaf oils were -pinene (36.1% in fresh, 44.1% in dried leaves), camphor (1.7%/20.1%), bornyl acetate (18.3%/3.1%), limonene (2.9%/5.0%), borneol (2.3%/3.1%), myrcene (2.2%/2.9%), -caryophyllene (2.3%/1.3%) and camphene (1.5%/1.8%). the antimicrobial activity of t. articulata essential oils were tested against clinical isolates of staphylococcus aureus, escherichia coli, proteus mirabilis, klebsiella pneumoniae, pseudomonas aeruginosa and candida albicans, responsible for nosocomial infections. essential oils of t. articulata were active on all pathogenic strains tested.