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HelpTest Code LAB12000 Stool Culture
Department
Microbiology
Collection Requirements
- Patient should pass the stool into a clean, dry pan or special container mounted on the toilet for this purpose.
- Do not use toilet paper to collect stool, because it may be impregnated with barium salts, which are inhibitory to some fecal pathogens. The specimen should not be mixed with urine, but semisolid to solid feces can be scooped out of urine, if necessary.
- Add stool specimen to transport until liquid reaches fill line.
- Emulsify specimen thoroughly in transport fluid.
- Send stool in transport media refrigerated within 48 hours of collection or sterile cup and rectal swabs in aerobic transport gel refrigerated within 24 hrs.
- Lesions of the rectum or sigmoid colon may be swabbed during proctoscopy or sigmoidoscopy and are preferred to swabs blindly inserted into the rectum.
- When multiple clutrues ordered, sumit one per day.
Primary Collection Container
Cary-Blair Media (Orange): Overall preferred for all collections and required for outpatient
Sterile Cup: Acceptable for inpatients only.
Alternate Collection Container
Gel Bottom Swab
Transport
Refrigerated
Preferred Transport Temperature
Refrigerated
Stability
Cary-Blair Media (Orange): 48 hrs
Sterile Cup: 24 hrs
Aerobic Gel Bottom Swab: 24 hrs
Reference Range
No Salmonella, Shigella, Campylobacter, or E.Coli:H7 Isolated
Methodology
Culture
Performed
Sunday-Saturday
Reported
4 days
CPT Codes
87045:87046
Identification, and susceptibility tests are billed seperately from culture.
Unacceptable Conditions
Delay in delivery to the lab.
Nonsterile or leaking containers.
Multiple specimens (more than one in 24 hours)
Dry specimens, or delayed transport without use of appropriate preservative.
Additional Information
Primary organisms screened for include: Salmonella, Shigella, Campylobacter, and E. coli O157:H7
Vibrio sp. And Yersinia sp. Are ordered separately and sent to a reference laboratory. Please search "stool culture, vibrio; stool culture yersinia", for order details.
Ova and Parasite and Clostridium difficile are not recoverred through routine culture.