title: Sputum fixatives: how safe is 50% alcohol?
abstract: It is believed that the following conclusions can be drawn from this study. 1) Fifty per cent ethyl alcohol fixative is bactericidal to 90 to 95% of the bacterial organisms present in the specimens submitted to cytology. 2) The fixative definitely appears to be selective against gram-negative organisms, both cocci and rods. 3) The fixative does not alter the ability of the organisms to take a characteristic stain. 4) The fixative does appear to alter the ability of the Histoplasma and the Cryptococcus to grow after a two-hour minimum fixation. No growth was noted after six weeks.
mesh_terms: D001419:Bacteria / Q000254:growth & development; D002175:Candida / Q000254:growth & development; D000431:Ethanol; D005658:Fungi / Q000254:growth & development; D006801:Humans; D013048:Specimen Handling; D013183:Sputum / Q000382:microbiology*; D013194:Staining and Labeling
chemical_list: D000431:Ethanol