title: How to use... blood cultures.
abstract: Positive blood culture is the gold standard for diagnosing bacteraemia and fungaemia, yet there is significant variability in aspects of performing and interpreting the test in children and neonates. Processing a blood culture can take several days, and includes use of semi-automated incubation with growth detection and a broad range of laboratory techniques such as Gram staining, phenotypic or molecular identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing on a cultured isolate. Sensitivity and specificity of a blood culture and time-to-positivity depend on a number of factors related to host/pathogen interaction, collection and transport of the specimen to the laboratory and methods employed to process the specimen. Interpretation of a positive result relies on correlation of the identity of the cultured microorganism with the clinical assessment of the child.
authors: Department of Microbiology, Whittington Health NHS Trust, London, UK.
authors: Surjo Kiran
authors: SK
authors: De
authors: Department of Microbiology, University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK.
authors: Nandini
authors: N
authors: Shetty
authors: Department of Microbiology, Whittington Health NHS Trust, London, UK.
authors: Michael
authors: M
authors: Kelsey
mesh_terms: D016470:Bacteremia / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000382:microbiology; D001419:Bacteria / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D001769:Blood / Q000382:microbiology*; D002648:Child; D019937:Diagnostic Techniques and Procedures / Q000592:standards*; D006801:Humans; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic
keywords: General Paediatrics; Infectious Diseases; Microbiology; Neonatology