However, if a delay is unavoidable, CSF should NOT be refrigerated, since it is an excellent culture medium and fungi will continue to replicate at 25-30°C. Other body fluid specimens may be stored at 4°C overnight, if necessary before culturing.
Do CSF specimens need to be refrigerated?
Specimens for culture should not be refrigerated or exposed to extreme cold, excessive heat, or sunlight. They should be transported at temperatures between 20°C and 35°C. For proper culture results, CSF specimens must be plated within 1 hour ( Figure 4 ).
What is the best way to transport CSF specimens?
CSF specimens should be transported to a microbiology laboratory as soon as possible. Specimens for culture should not be refrigerated or exposed to extreme cold, excessive heat, or sunlight. They should be transported at temperatures between 20°C and 35°C.
Do you need to refrigerate blood cultures?
Do not refrigerate blood cultures, swabs in charcoal transport medium, cerebrospinal, joint and other normally sterile body fluids, tissue, or specimens already inoculated to plates or broth. Such cultures should be brought to the main Clinical Laboratories for prompt handling.
Why do some foods not need to be refrigerated?
Certain foods can lose their flavors, colors, or textures due to the cold temperature and are best stored outside of the fridge. Below is a list of 20 foods you should not refrigerate when you bring them home from the grocery store.
Can CSF sample be refrigerated?
Use a sterile syringe and needle to inoculate 0.5-1.0 ml of CSF into the T-I medium. The remaining CSF should be kept in the collection tube. It should not be refrigerated, but should be maintained at room temperature (20-25°C) before Gram staining and other tests.
Why is CSF considered as precious specimen and not advised to be refrigerated for storage during processing?
CSF samples for hematologic testing should be maintained at room temperature prior to testing. Refrigeration is also not recommended for culture specimens since fastidious organisms such as Haemophilus influenzae and Neisseria meningitidis may not survive at refrigerated temperatures.
How long does CSF last at room temperature?
Furthermore, the manufacturer declares lactate stability in CSF for 3 hours at room temperature and proteins one day at 15 - 25 °C (22, 23).
Why blood sample should not be refrigerated?
Biochemistry blood samples may be stored refrigerated (4-8°C), but please be aware that the integrity of these samples will be compromised, resulting in spurious results, particularly (but not limited to) plasma sodium, potassium, phosphate, LDH.
Why CSF is a precious specimen?
CSF has been used as a valuable clinical specimen for providing crucial information for diagnosis of a wide variety of infections, diseases, and severe conditions that affect the brain and spinal cord (see Table 2).
How long can CSF be stored?
Conclusion Formol saline and EDTA, when mixed with the CSF in the ratio of 1:5, can preserve significant cellularity for up to 24 hours.
Where is CSF stored?
The CSF is contained within a system of fluid-filled cavities called ventricles. The ventricles are shown in blue on the following midsagittal section of the brain. CSF is produced mainly by a structure called the choroid plexus in the lateral, third and fourth ventricles.
What color is cerebrospinal fluid?
Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is a clear liquid that surrounds the brain and spinal cord. It provides a cushion for delicate brain and spinal tissue.
What is the color of CSF?
Supernatant Color Normal CSF is crystal clear. However, as few as 200 white blood cells (WBCs) per mm3 or 400 red blood cells (RBCs) per mm3 will cause CSF to appear turbid.
What happens if you dont refrigerate blood?
Blood stored longer than three weeks becomes less flexible and less able to fit in the body's smallest capillaries. Depending on the blood's future use, longer storage without refrigerated or frozen temperatures can jeopardize its viability.
What happens to blood at room temperature?
Conclusion: Storage of whole blood at room temperature for 72 hours leads to marked reductions in pH and DPG, but the observed reduction in PLT function and plasma coagulation factor activity was surprisingly modest compared to literature values.
Can you refrigerate blood samples?
If there is no centrifuge, the blood can be kept in a refrigerator (4–8°C) until there is complete retraction of the clot from the serum (no longer than 24 hours).
How is a CSF specimen collected?
CSF protects the brain and spinal cord from injury by acting like a liquid cushion. CSF is usually obtained through a lumbar puncture (spinal tap). During the procedure, a needle is inserted usually between the 3rd and 4th lumbar vertebrae and the CSF fluid is collected for testing.
How is a CSF specimen collected quizlet?
A CSF sample is obtained by a physician usually via lumbar puncture in the L3-L4 region. Sterile technique is always used to reduce the risk of infection. Care must be taken to avoid injury to neural tissue. A syringe is used to remove 6 - 15 mL of spinal fluid in an adult.
How do you collect a CSF sample?
A spinal needle will be inserted. An opening pressure is sometimes taken. An abnormal pressure can suggest an infection or other problem. Once the needle is in position, the CSF pressure is measured and a sample of 1 to 10 milliliters (mL) of CSF is collected in 4 vials.
Why are CSF samples urgent?
Many infective agents have been shown to cause meningitis, including bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites. Acute bacterial meningitis is a severe and life-threatening disease and the examination of CSF samples is considered a priority.
What is CSF collection?
Collection and transport of CSF The collection of CSF is an invasive procedure and should only be performed by experienced personnel under aseptic conditions. If bacterial meningitis is suspected, CSF is the best clinical specimen to use for isolation, identification, and characterization of the etiological agents.
What is the best way to transport CSF to a microbiology lab?
For transport to a microbiology laboratory, place the specimen in a container that can be securely sealed. Wipe any bottles with CSF or blood on the outside thoroughly with a disinfectant, such as a 70% alcohol swab.
How long does it take for CSF to be processed?
Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) should be processed in a microbiology laboratory within 1 hour after collection or inoculated into Trans-Isolate (T-I) medium for transport to the laboratory if processing within 1 hour is not feasible.
What temperature should blood culture bottles be incubated at?
If immediate transport to a microbiology laboratory is not feasible, place the inoculated blood culture bottle in an incubator at 35-37°C with ~5% CO 2 (or in a candle-jar) until transport to a microbiology laboratory is possible.
Why is it important to collect and transport clinical specimens?
The proper collection and transport of clinical specimens is critical for the isolation, identification, and characterization of agents that cause bacterial meningitis. Optimally, clinical specimens should be obtained before antimicrobial therapy commences in order to avoid loss of viability of the etiological agents.
What is CSF used for?
The collection of CSF is an invasive procedure and should only be performed by experienced personnel under aseptic conditions. If bacterial meningitis is suspected, CSF is the best clinical specimen to use for isolation, identification, and characterization of the etiological agents. Suspected agents should include N. meningitidis, S. pneumoniae, and H. influenzae and other pathogens in some cases.
How many CSF tubes should be collected?
If possible, three tubes (1 ml each) of CSF should be collected for microbiology, chemistry, and cytology. If only one tube of CSF is available, it should be given to the microbiology laboratory. Because the presence of blood can affect cultures of CSF, if more than one tube of CSF is collected from a patient, the first tube collected (which could contain contaminating blood from the lumbar puncture) should not be the tube sent to the microbiology laboratory.
Why is it important to adhere to biosafety guidelines while handling potentially infectious clinical specimens?
It is important to adhere to proper biosafety guidelines while handling potentially infectious clinical specimens in order to maintain a safe working environment for patients, health care workers, and laboratorians. Infection may be transmitted from patient to staff and from staff to patient during the procedures described below. In addition to the agents that cause bacterial meningitis, the patient could have other bacterial or viral agents in either the CSF of blood and both are a great hazard and potentially lethal. Of particular importance are the viruses causing hepatitis and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. To decrease the risk of transmission of these agents, the recommendations below should be followed:
What temperature should blood culture bottles be incubated at?
Ideally, inoculated blood culture bottles should be transported to a microbiology laboratory immediately for overnight incubation at 35-37°C with ~5% CO2 (or in a candle-jar) and subsequent culture onto a BAP and CAP. All inoculated blood culture media should be protected from temperature extremes (not less than 18°C or more than 37°C) with a transport carrier and thermal insulator (such as extruded polystyrene foam).
Why is it important to collect and transport clinical specimens?
The proper collection and transport of clinical specimens is critical for the isolation, identification, and characterization of agents that cause bacterial meningitis. Optimally, clinical specimens should be obtained before antimicrobial therapy commences in order to avoid loss of viability of the etiological agents. Treatment of the patient, however, should not be delayed while awaiting collection of specimens or results from the laboratory and a specimen should be obtained in all suspect cases as bacterial pathogens can still be detected even after antimicrobial therapy has begun. N. meningitidis, S. pneumoniae, and H. influenzae are fastidious and fragile bacteria. They are more reliably isolated if the clinical specimens are examined as soon as possible after collection. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) should be processed in a microbiology laboratory within 1 hour after collection or inoculated into Trans-Isolate (T-I) medium for transport to the laboratory if processing within 1 hour is not feasible. Blood specimens should be immediately inoculated into a blood culture bottle and transported to a microbiology laboratory as soon as possible for overnight incubation and growth of bacteria.
How long can you keep stone fruit in the fridge?
Stone fruits should be left out to ripen at room temperature. Not only does this enhance the flavor of the fruit, but it also allows the fruit to ripen in a natural way. After they're done ripening, however, stone fruits can be placed in the fridge for up to five more days.
How long can you keep a melon in the fridge?
Research suggests that storage at room temperature may also help keep the antioxidants in melons more intact. Once you've cut a melon, store it in the refrigerator for three to four days.
How long can garlic be kept in the fridge?
Garlic should never be put in the fridge, not even after the head has been open. The cloves can stay fresh for up to 10 days with their skins intact, but putting them in the fridge will cause them to lose their potent flavor.
Why is hot sauce so hot?
Putting hot sauce in the fridge can cause it to lose that spiciness that makes it so hot. There's enough vinegar in most hot sauces to stop bacteria growth and help keep them so fresh.
How long do tomatoes last in the fridge?
If you put tomatoes in the fridge, they can become mealy and lose their flavor. Instead, store them on the counter at room temperature for 1-2 days, but keep them out any longer than that and they might go bad.
How to keep nuts from going bad?
Colder temperatures can help prevent the natural oils in nuts from going bad, but the cold can get rid of the nutty flavor. Shelled nuts can also absorb other scents that may be in the fridge. Instead, store nuts in an airtight container in the pantry.
How long can squash be kept out of the fridge?
These veggies can last for about a month or longer out of the fridge.
Why should meningitis fluid be delivered to the laboratory?
Bacteria (routine): Because of the relative fragility of many of the common etiologic organisms in meningitis, the fluid should be promptly delivered to the laboratory.
When to bring gastric aspirate specimens to lab?
Collection: Gastric aspirate specimens should rapidly be brought to the laboratory immediately after collection, and only between the hours of, 06:30 and 19:00, for neutralization of the antibacterial acid content. Bacteria (routine): Gastric samples will be cultured for Helicobacter pylori when specified.
What bacteria should be submitted in transport medium?
Bacteria (routine): For erysipelas, impetigo, and cellulitis swabs taken from superficially crusted and weeping lesions, when present, should be submitted in transport medium. Needle aspiration of the center or the margin of the area involved is of limited utility in these infections. For paronychia, whitlow, folliculitis, and carbuncles, submit the aspirated pus or - less desirable - submit the purulent drainage on a swab in transport medium.
When should gastric aspirate specimens be collected?
Collection: Gastric aspirate specimens should rapidly be brought to the laboratory immediately after collection, and only between the hours of, 06:30 and 19:00, for neutralization of the antibacterial acid content.
When to order bacterial culture?
Fungi: Order a bacterial culture when urinary tract infection due to yeast is suspected. Consult with the laboratory prior to submission of urine when infection with other fungal agents are suspected.
Do yeasts need a separate culture?
Fungi: Yeasts such as Candida spp. and Cryptococcus spp. will grow in routine blood cultures and do not require a separate fungal culture. To culture lipophilic Malassezia yeast and invasive molds including Histoplasma, Fusarium and Scedosporium also order Fungal Culture, Blood.
Is mycobacteria culture unproductive?
Mycobacteria culture: Routine culture of blood for mycobacteria is unproductive except to detect Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare complex in patients who are HIV-positive. Submit two Dark green (gel-free) sodium heparin tubes and indicate that the patient is immunocompromised when ordering the test.
