Application of stains in clinical microbiology.
Stains have been used for diagnosing infectious diseases since the late 1800s. The Gram stain remains the most commonly used stain because it detects and differentiates a wide range of pathogens. The next most commonly used diagnostic technique is acid-fast staining that is used primarily to detect Mycobacterium tuberculosis and other severe infections. Many infectious agents grow slowly on culture media or may not grow at all; stains may be the only method to detect these organisms in clinical specimens. In the hands of experienced clinical microscopists, stains provide rapid and cost-effective information for preliminary diagnosis of infectious diseases. A review of the most common staining methods used in the clinical microbiology laboratory is presented here.
Madison
B M
BM
Public Health Program Practice Office, Division of Laboratory Systems, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia 30341-3724, USA.
D000165:Acridine Orange; D000818:Animals; D001424:Bacterial Infections / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000382:microbiology*; D004396:Coloring Agents; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes; D005658:Fungi / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D008829:Microbiology; D009181:Mycoses / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000473:pathology; D010272:Parasitic Diseases / Q000469:parasitology* / Q000473:pathology
D004396:Coloring Agents; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes; D000165:Acridine Orange