Blood cultures are used to assist
in diagnosis of:
- Fever of unknown origin
- Sepsis
- Shock
- Chills/fever
Particular care is taken to avoid skin bacterial contamination when
blood cultures are drawn:
- Cleanse the skin with povidone-iodine or alcohol prior to
venipuncture.
- After the blood is drawn, discard the needle and replace it with a
fresh, sterile needle before injecting the blood into the culture
tube.
- Cleanse the rubber stoppers on the culture tubes with povidone-iodine
or alcohol prior to placing the blood into the tubes.
Blood cultures are most likely to be positive for organisms during a
temperature spike. |
Normal Values*
*These are general values taken from a variety of
sources. The actual normal values may vary from lab to lab and from one
type of testing protocol to another.
|
Source:
Operational Medicine 2001, Health
Care in Military Settings, NAVMED P-5139, May 1, 2001, Bureau
of Medicine and Surgery, Department of the Navy, 2300 E Street NW, Washington,
D.C., 20372-5300 |