Investigation of Laboratory cross-contamination of Mycobacterium tuberculosis cultures.
Many clinicians and laboratory personnel are unaware that a culture positive for Mycobacterium tuberculosis may represent contamination. Laboratory cross-contamination with the M. tuberculosis laboratory control strain (H37Ra) occurs infrequently and therefore demands heightened awareness and recognition. We report 3 occurrences of laboratory cross-contamination from the same laboratory. These occurrences illustrate the importance of interpreting laboratory results in conjunction with the patient's clinical presentation. Failure to recognize laboratory cross-contamination with M. tuberculosis leads to both erroneous administration of unnecessary medications and expenditure of resources required to conduct contact investigations.
Fitzpatrick
L
L
Division of Tuberculosis Elimination, National Center for HIV, STD and TB Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia 30333, USA. lfitzpatrick@cdc.gov
Braden
C
C
Cronin
W
W
English
J
J
Campbell
E
E
Valway
S
S
Onorato
I
I
D000328:Adult; D001431:Bacteriological Techniques; D019411:Clinical Laboratory Techniques; D003951:Diagnostic Errors; D004866:Equipment Contamination; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007755:Laboratories, Hospital; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis / Q000302:isolation & purification*