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Test Code C AFB Blood Culture, Mycobacterium (AFB) Blood

Important Note

SPECIAL COLLECTION TUBE REQUIRED - Yellow Top Isolator Tube (stored in the Microbiology Section of the Laboratory). Tube is NOT to be sent through the pneumatic tube system.

Methodology

Culture. 

Acid Fast Stain NOT performed on Blood Specimens.

Specimen Requirements

Note: As with other cultures, the administration of antimicrobial therapy prior to culture may make the recovery of pathogens difficult to impossible.

 

1.  Collection tube MUST be full.

2.  Specimen Draw Location is Required.

3.  Refer to the Microbiology Specimen Collection Procedure for collection instructions.

4.  Refer to the Microbiology Specimen Collection Procedure for special requests and additional notes.

 

Day(s) Test Set Up

Monday through Sunday

Reference Values

No acid-fast bacilli isolated

Critical value (automatic call-back): positive AFB growth

 

Test Classification and CPT Coding

87116-Culture

Performing Laboratory

Beebe Healthcare Laboratory

Performing Location

Margaret H. Rollins Laboratory

Specimen Transport Temperature

Ambient

Additional Information

Cultures are worked up and reported per standard Microbiology guidelines.  Full organism identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing are performed when appropriate and will incur additional CPT codes and charges.  Pertinent patient history should be communicated directly to the Microbiology Department when necessary (patient travel history, suspect and/or rule out certain pathogens, any unusual circumstances, etc) so that the culture can be worked up appropriately.  If additional workup is required beyond the final culture report, please contact the Microbiology Department at (302)-645-3563 within 5 days to discuss the case with a technologist.