1. Specimen transportation
(1) Urine specimens should be sent for examination immediately after collection.
(2) If the culture cannot be performed within 30 minutes of collection, it should be stored in a 4°C refrigerator, but not more than 24 hours.
(ix) Fecal specimens
1. Clinical sampling indications: When the patient has abdominal pain, diarrhea (watery stool, pus and blood stool), or accompanied by fever; abnormal stool routine microscopy, it is recommended to collect stool specimens for bacterial culture.
2. Specimen collection and requirements Specimens should be collected in a wide-mouth stool box with a sealed lid as far as possible before the application of antimicrobial therapy. Bloodless Campylobacter agar medium is required if Campylobacter jejuni is considered. Clostridium difficile needs to survive in an anaerobic environment, and it is recommended that specimen collection and inoculation be performed at the bedside. Immediately after inoculation, specimens are placed in anaerobic bags and sent to the laboratory. Repeated specimen collection will improve the positive detection rate.
(1) Natural defecation method After natural defecation in a dry and clean toilet (avoid sitting or squatting toilets), pick 2-3 g of stool with pus, blood and mucus (1-3 ml of flocculent material for liquid stool) and put it into a sterile stool box for examination. If there is no mucus or pus, the stool will be collected at multiple points and sent for examination.
(2) Rectal swab method (patients with difficulty in defecation or infants) Wash the area around the anus with soapy water and insert a cotton swab soaked with sterile saline into the anus for 4-5 cm (2-3 cm for children).
The cotton swab is placed in contact with the mucosal surface of the rectum, and the swab is gently rotated so that feces can be visibly seen on the swab. The cotton swab with fecal specimen is inserted into the transport medium and sent for immediate examination.
3. Label and request form The request form should include the patient's name, medical record number, date and time of collection, diagnosis, and relevant travel history. Specimen identification requires a unique identification number or barcode.
The label on the specimen should include the patient's name, medical record number, collection time, etc. Fresh specimens sent for examination should report the nature of the stool, and the presence of blood on the specimen surface or inside the specimen should also be indicated.
4. Specimen transportation
(1) Stool specimens should be sent for examination as soon as possible, and the time for transporting specimens at room temperature should not exceed 2 hours.
(2) If the specimen cannot be sent for examination in time, it can be preserved by adding pH 7.0 phosphate glycerol buffer or using Cary-Blair transport medium in 4℃ refrigerator for no more than 24 hours.
(3) Specimens collected from rectal swabs must be placed in GN broth and sent for examination. The transport time should not exceed 2 hours at room temperature and not more than 24 hours at 4°C in the refrigerator.
