Upper Respiratory Culture, Routine
Also known as: Culture, Upper Respiratory, Routine, Ear Culture, Nasopharynx Culture, Nose Culture, Sinus Culture
Use
Isolate and identify potentially pathogenic organisms from throat, sinus etc; evaluate pharyngitis; evaluate nares for staph
Special Instructions
Sterile specimens collected by invasive procedures should be submitted as sterile body fluid cultures. If the aspirated material amount is small, it may be advisable to inject it into an anaerobic transport or absorb it onto the swab of the bacterial swab collection kit. Ensure that the bacterial transport is not expired before use. For isolation of Neisseria gonorrhoeae, use GC Culture Only [008128] with Jembec® transport. Specimens from other non-aerobic sources cannot be cultured under this test. Incorrectly submitted specimens will be processed as per source indicated on the test request form.
Limitations
Interpreting results requires significant expertise to avoid false positives/negatives. Various etiologic agents, including anaerobic organisms, can cause pharyngitis but will not be detected with aerobic culture methods. This procedure does not include screening for Neisseria gonorrhoeae or Corynebacterium diphtheriae. Chronic tonsil and adenoid infections often involve anaerobic organisms, which are not recovered through aerobic methods.
Methodology
Culture-based
Biomarkers
LOINC Codes
- 32355-0
- 32355-0
- 23658-8
Result Turnaround Time
2-4 days
Related Documents
For more information, please review the documents below
Specimen
Other
Volume
One swab or aspirated material
Minimum Volume
Not provided
Container
Bacterial culture transport swab
Collection Instructions
Throat: Depress tongue and rub swab vigorously over tonsillar area and posterior pharynx. Nasopharynx: Insert flexible wire swab into nostril until posterior nares, leave for 15-30 secs, rotate and remove.
Storage Instructions
Maintain specimen at room temperature.
Causes for Rejection
Unlabeled specimen, name discrepancy, inappropriate transport device, leaking, received after 48 hours, expired transport