title: Four-day incubation period for blood culture bottles processed with the Difco ESP blood culture system.
abstract: Blood culture records from 1994 to 1995 from five U.S. medical centers all using the Difco ESP continuous monitoring blood culture system were reviewed retrospectively. Among a total of 7,362 isolates of bacteria and yeasts, only 0.1% of possibly significant isolates would have been missed had blood cultures been routinely incubated for 4 days instead of the 5 days recommended by the manufacturer. Conversely, numerous contaminants, detected only on day 5, would have been eliminated by a 4-day incubation period.
authors.affiliation: University of Massachusetts Medical Center, Worcester 01655, USA.
authors.forename: G V
authors.initials: GV
authors.lastname: Doern
authors.forename: A B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Brueggemann
authors.forename: W M
authors.initials: WM
authors.lastname: Dunne
authors.forename: S G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Jenkins
authors.forename: D C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Halstead
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: McLaughlin
mesh_terms: D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation*