title: Isolation, culture, and identification of meningococci from clinical specimens.
abstract: Humans are the only natural reservoir for meningococci. The appropriate specimens that should be taken for isolation of meningococci are dependent on the clinical question. The most appropriate specimen and/or laboratory techniques for microbiological diagnosis in an acutely sick patient with suspected invasive disease like meningitis/septicemia (1) may be quite different from those required for diagnosis of the cause of a local infection in eye, upper respiratory tract, lower respiratory tract, or urogenital tract, or for the study of the carrier state of healthy persons.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Olcén
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Fredlund