Diphtheria Culture

Test Name	Diphtheria Culture
Alternate Name(s)	Corynebacterium diphtheriae culture Corynebacterium ulcerans culture Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis culture
Laboratory Module	Microbiology
Ordering Mnemonic	DIPHTH
Specimen Type	A swab of the area that is of concern to the health care physician. Samples can be from wound, abscess, burns, cellulitis, drainage, incisions, lesions or ulcers. Throat Nose Nasopharynx Nasopharyngeal Fluids Wound Lesions
Collection Container	Amies Transport Media
Container Information	Amies Transport media swab
Collection Information	For open wounds debride, if appropriate and thoroughly rinse with 0.9% sterile saline solution prior to collection. Sample viable infected tissue, rather than superficial debris. Avoid swabbing slough or necrotic tissue. The nurse or physician will take a swab of the area in question. Rotate the tip of the swab over the identified 1 cm² are of the wound for 5 seconds, applying sufficient pressure to express fluid from the wound. Immediately insert the swab into appropriate transport system following the manufacturer's instructions for use. Use caution to avoid contaminating the swab when placing it into the transport system. The swab should be labelled appropriately and then sent to the laboratory.
Test Schedule	Daily
Routine Turnaround Time	Culture Result: 24 hours Final: 72 hours Toxin Result: 5-7 days
Critical Values	As growth is detected and identified the information is made available to the health care provider.
Lab Process Notes	Any isolated Corynebacterium diphtheriae or Corynebacterium ulcerans or Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis isolate required to send out to reference laboratory for Diphtheria toxin gene PCR .
Storage and Transport	Specimen should be transported to the laboratory ASAP in biohazard bag to the laboratory after collection. Specimen should be stored at room temperature after receipt in the laboratory ( in Microbiology rack).
Test Referred To	On site, BGH laboratory

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