Pleural/ascitis/effussion fluid culture
Pleural, ascitis, effusion, pericardial
When to request this test
Fluid effusion, suspected fluid infection
Interferences & limitations
- Contamination by skin flora during sampling: follow careful aseptic sampling procedure
- Antibiotic treatment before sampling can inhibit bacterial growth and skew results
- Haemorrhagic sample may interfere with biochemistry (protein level not interpretable)
5-10 days (preleminary results in a few hours: Gram staining, cytology, biochemistry)
- Sample nature: Pleural fluid, ascitic fluid, other effusion fluid
- Recommended volume: At least 1 mL per container/tube
- Type of container: Sterile tube/container (for microbiology) + citrate or EDTA tube (for cytology)+ blood culture vial if possible (a pair or at least 1 anaerobic vial)
<2h at room temperature