Handling of Specimens for Bacterial Culture and Viral Isolation
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JUN 10, 2010
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Sufficient specimens must be submitted for each test requested. To process for aerobic, anaerobic, and fungal culture, three swabs or sufficient specimen to be divided between three different media should be submitted.
Fluid specimens should be submitted in a Port-A-Cul vial (flip top with rubber stopper) (Figure 3-1). Expel all air from syringe and using a new needle, layer fluid on top of transport medium (to minimize oxygen concentration within the vial).
Tissue specimens should be submitted in a Port-A-Cul tube (screw-cap tube) (Figure 3-1). Push the specimen to the bottom of the tube. For a specimen too large for the Port-A-Cul tube, tissue is placed in a sterile specimen container with a small amount of sterile physiologic saline solution to prevent desiccation. If anaerobic culture is needed, remove a small portion of tissue and place it near the bottom of an additional Port-A-Cul tube.
Swab specimens should be submitted in a Port-A-Cul tube or similar culturette device if only aerobic bacterial culture is needed.
Figure 3-1. Commercially available transport medium for culture is displayed.
Table 3.1. Handling of Specimens for Bacterial Culture and Viral Isolation | ||
Aerobic/Fungal Specimen | Suggested Transport Device | Storage or Transport |
Abscess/wound (aerobic) | Port-A-Cul tube or vial* | Refrigerate/cold pack |
Blood Culture | Blood culture bottle (Columbia Broth, Trypticase Soy Broth, or Supplemented Peptone Broth)* | Room Temperature |
Catheter (distal 2 inches) | Sterile specimen cup | Refrigerate (add a few drops of sterile physiologic saline solution to keep moist) cold pack |
Eye (swab specimen) Eye (corneal specimen) | Swab with transport medium (e.g., Amies or Stuart's medium) Tissue placed in sterile physiological saline solution | Refrigerate/cold pack Room Temperature |
Feces | Screw-cap specimen cup (clean); Preserved w/ Cary Blair transport medium* | Refrigerate/cold pack |
Fluids (CSF, pleural, etc.) Fluids (pericardial) | Port-A-Cul vial* or sterile tube Port-A-Cul vial* or sterile tube | Room Temperature Refrigerate/cold pack |
Hair, scale, crust | Paper envelope | Room Temperature |
Milk | Sterile tube | Refrigerate/cold pack |
Endometrial swab | Port-A-Cul tube or vial*, or swab placed in a transport medium (e.g. Amies or Stuart's medium) | Refrigerate/cold pack |
Respiratory secretions (TTW, BAL) | Port-A-Cul vial* or sterile tube | Refrigerate/cold pack |
Tissue (biopsy) | Port-A-Cul vial* or sterile tube w/ sterile physiological saline solution | Room Temperature |
Urine | Sterile tube | Refrigerate/cold pack |
Abscess/wound | Port-A-Cul tube or vial* | Room Temperature |
Fluids | Port-A-Cul vial* | Room Temperature |
Tissues/swabs | Port-A-Cul tube* | Room Temperature |
Viral Specimen | ||
Tissues/swabs | Place samples separately in plastic food storage bags | < 48hr to lab -cool to 4°C and ship on ice packs |
(Source: Manual of Clinical Microbiology, 7th ed. Murray, PR, ed. ASM Press, Washington, D. C., 1999.) | ||
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How to reference this publication (Harvard system)?
(2010) “Handling of Specimens for Bacterial Culture and Viral Isolation”, Manual of Equine Diagnostic Procedures. Available at: https://www.ivis.org/library/manual-of-equine-diagnostic-procedures/handling-of-specimens-for-bacterial-culture-and-viral-isolation (Accessed: 09 October 2024).
Affiliation of the authors at the time of publication
1College of Veterinary Medicine Auburn University Auburn, AL, USA and 2Center for Veterinary Health Sciences, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, USA.
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ISBN-10
1893441997
ISBN-13
978-1893441996
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