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22498 Culture, Anaerobe

Culture, Anaerobe
Test Code: ANAE
Synonyms/Keywords
​Anaerobe Culture, Anaerobic Culture
Specimen Requirements
Specimen Type Preferred Container/Tube Acceptable Container/Tube Specimen Volume Specimen Minimum Volume
(allows for 1 repeat)		 Pediatric Minimum Volume
(no repeat)
Fluid/Aspirate​ Dental Transport Media ​ ​1.0 mL ​0.5 mL ​0.5 mL
Tissue (<5mm)​ ACT 1 Transport​ ​ ​ ​ ​
Tissue (>5mm)​ Screw-capped sterile container ​ ​ ​ ​ ​
Swab​ ESwab™ ​Other anaerobe transport medium ​1 swab ​1 swab ​1 swab
​Hardware obtained from surgical procedures Screw-capped sterile container ​​ ​ ​ ​ ​
Collection Processing Instructions
Specimens should be delivered to the microbiology laboratory as soon as possible. Culture of specimens older than 24 hours may lead to a reduction in recovery of microorganisms. Gram stains will routinely be performed if sufficient specimen is received.
 
Fluid/Aspirate: Submit in Dental transport medium: Cleanse rubber top with alcohol and allow to dry. Inject fluid or aspirate into transport media taking care not to introduce air. 
 
Tissue (>5mm): Submit in a screw-capped container and moisten tissue with a few drops of sterile saline to prevent drying.
 
Tissue (<5mm): Place "gently on top" of semi-solid gel in ACT 1 Transport.  Do not submerge tissue into semi-solid gel.
 
Swabs:

- ESwab: collect one swab for Gram stain, aerobic and anaerobic cultures, and an additional swab for each additional culture type or stain (e.g. fungus or mycobacteria).

- Other Amies medium swab types: collect one swab for every culture and stain to be ordered.
See ESwab collection video for more information

Swab specimens are not recommended! To optimize recovery of clinically significant anaerobic bacteria, care must be taken to avoid contamination with indigenous flora by collecting the specimen from an active site of infection. ​
 
For more information on Specimen Collection Media/Swab, see Specimen Transport Pictorial
Acceptable Body Sites
Certain specimens from specific body sites are unacceptable for anaerobe culture. Please refer to table below for a complete list of acceptable and unacceptable specimens for anaerobe culture.

 

 

BODY SITE
ACCEPTABLE
UNACCEPTABLE
Head and Neck
Aspirate
Tissue biopsy
Peritonsillar abscess
Maxillary or ethmoid sinus
Middle ear fluid (properly collected)
Throat or nasopharyngeal swab
Oral or gingival swab
Ear canal swab
Material collected via the nares
Upper respiratory tract secretions submitted on swab
 
Pulmonary
Transtracheal aspirate
Pleural fluid
Thoracentesis fluid
Lung tissue
Bronchial brushings collected with a protected double lumen catheter.
Fine needle aspirate  
Sputum or induced sputum
Endotracheal aspirates
Bronchial washings or lavages
Bronchial brushings collected without a protected double-lumen catheter
Bone and
Joint fluid
Synovial fluid aspirate
Bone or Bone Marrow
Biopsy Material
Superficial swabs
Abdominal
Peritoneal fluid
Bile
Liver abscess
Tissue biopsy
Abscess contents
Superficial swabs
Female Genital Tract
Ovarian abscess
Fallopian tube fluid
Culdocentesis specimens
Bartholin gland cyst
Endocervix
Placental tissue
IUD (for Actinomyces)
Cervical swabs or secretions
Vaginal swabs or secretions
Male Genital Tract
 
Prostatic or Seminal fluid Urethral Secretions
Urinary Tract
Suprapubic aspirate
 
Clean catch urine
Catheterized urine
Urine from nephrostomy tube
Urine from cystoscopy
Feces/Bowel
If looking specifically for
C. difficile or C. botulinum or C. perfringens.
Duodenal sources: If looking for overgrowth only.
Feces or rectal swabs
Large bowel contents
Small bowel contents
Superficial / Decubitus Ulcers and
Diabetic Foot Ulcers
Well-cleansed or post debrided material from base of ulcer (swab or curette)
Purulent material from under skin flaps or deep pocket aspirates
Surface swab
​Hardware Obtained from surgical procedure.​ ​External fixation devices
​

 

Specimen Stability Information
Specimen Type Temperature Time
Fluid/Aspirate​ Room Temperature​
Tissue Room Temperature​
​Swabs and all other specimens ​Room Temperature ​< 4 hours
​ ​Refrigerate ​> 4 hours
Rejection Criteria

Specimens not listed above as acceptable for anaerobic culture

Dry swabs, and containers not approved for anaerobic transport

Leaking specimens

Specimens > 4 days

Performing Laboratory Information
Performing Location Day(s) Test Performed Analytical Time Methodology/Instrumentation
​Marshfield Center Monday through Friday​ 5 days​ Conventional culture, standard susceptibility testing, manual or automated identification methods and nucleic acid sequence analysis as needed.
Test Information
​The reliability of culture is very dependent upon the method of collection, conditions of transport, and the quality of the specimen.  Some organisms will not grow in routine culture, but can be a significant cause of infection. 
 
Susceptibility testing of anaerobic organisms is generally clinical indicated only when isolated from blood, CSF, joint, or other normally sterile body site or when there has been a treatmet failure.  Consult Microbiology if additional testing is desired.
 
Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing (AST) will be performed on significant bacterial isolates based upon Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute guidelines.  Method used is minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) by Etest®.
 
‘ESwab’ is a trademark of Copan Diagnostics.
‘E-test’ is a registered trademark of bioMerieux Inc.
Reference Range Information
Performing Location Reference Range
All Performing Sites No anaerobes isolated or No growth​
Outreach CPTs
CPT Modifier
(if needed)		 Quantity Description Comments
​87075 ​ ​ ​Culture, bacterial, anaerobic ​
​87076 ​ ​ ​Anaerobic isolate, definitive ID ​as needed
​87153 ​ ​ ​Identification by nucleic acid sequencing method ​as needed
​87185 ​ ​ Enzyme detection as needed​
​87181 ​ ​ ​Antibiotic gradient ​as needed
Synonyms/Keywords
​Anaerobe Culture, Anaerobic Culture
Ordering Applications
Ordering Application Description
​Centricity ​Cult. Anaerobic
​Cerner ​Anaerobe Culture
If the ordering application you are looking for is not listed, contact your local laboratory for assistance.
Specimen Requirements
Specimen Type Preferred Container/Tube Acceptable Container/Tube Specimen Volume Specimen Minimum Volume
(allows for 1 repeat)		 Pediatric Minimum Volume
(no repeat)
Fluid/Aspirate​ Dental Transport Media ​ ​1.0 mL ​0.5 mL ​0.5 mL
Tissue (<5mm)​ ACT 1 Transport​ ​ ​ ​ ​
Tissue (>5mm)​ Screw-capped sterile container ​ ​ ​ ​ ​
Swab​ ESwab™ ​Other anaerobe transport medium ​1 swab ​1 swab ​1 swab
​Hardware obtained from surgical procedures Screw-capped sterile container ​​ ​ ​ ​ ​
Collection Processing
Specimens should be delivered to the microbiology laboratory as soon as possible. Culture of specimens older than 24 hours may lead to a reduction in recovery of microorganisms. Gram stains will routinely be performed if sufficient specimen is received.
 
Fluid/Aspirate: Submit in Dental transport medium: Cleanse rubber top with alcohol and allow to dry. Inject fluid or aspirate into transport media taking care not to introduce air. 
 
Tissue (>5mm): Submit in a screw-capped container and moisten tissue with a few drops of sterile saline to prevent drying.
 
Tissue (<5mm): Place "gently on top" of semi-solid gel in ACT 1 Transport.  Do not submerge tissue into semi-solid gel.
 
Swabs:

- ESwab: collect one swab for Gram stain, aerobic and anaerobic cultures, and an additional swab for each additional culture type or stain (e.g. fungus or mycobacteria).

- Other Amies medium swab types: collect one swab for every culture and stain to be ordered.
See ESwab collection video for more information

Swab specimens are not recommended! To optimize recovery of clinically significant anaerobic bacteria, care must be taken to avoid contamination with indigenous flora by collecting the specimen from an active site of infection. ​
 
For more information on Specimen Collection Media/Swab, see Specimen Transport Pictorial
Acceptable Body Sites
Certain specimens from specific body sites are unacceptable for anaerobe culture. Please refer to table below for a complete list of acceptable and unacceptable specimens for anaerobe culture.

 

 

BODY SITE
ACCEPTABLE
UNACCEPTABLE
Head and Neck
Aspirate
Tissue biopsy
Peritonsillar abscess
Maxillary or ethmoid sinus
Middle ear fluid (properly collected)
Throat or nasopharyngeal swab
Oral or gingival swab
Ear canal swab
Material collected via the nares
Upper respiratory tract secretions submitted on swab
 
Pulmonary
Transtracheal aspirate
Pleural fluid
Thoracentesis fluid
Lung tissue
Bronchial brushings collected with a protected double lumen catheter.
Fine needle aspirate  
Sputum or induced sputum
Endotracheal aspirates
Bronchial washings or lavages
Bronchial brushings collected without a protected double-lumen catheter
Bone and
Joint fluid
Synovial fluid aspirate
Bone or Bone Marrow
Biopsy Material
Superficial swabs
Abdominal
Peritoneal fluid
Bile
Liver abscess
Tissue biopsy
Abscess contents
Superficial swabs
Female Genital Tract
Ovarian abscess
Fallopian tube fluid
Culdocentesis specimens
Bartholin gland cyst
Endocervix
Placental tissue
IUD (for Actinomyces)
Cervical swabs or secretions
Vaginal swabs or secretions
Male Genital Tract
 
Prostatic or Seminal fluid Urethral Secretions
Urinary Tract
Suprapubic aspirate
 
Clean catch urine
Catheterized urine
Urine from nephrostomy tube
Urine from cystoscopy
Feces/Bowel
If looking specifically for
C. difficile or C. botulinum or C. perfringens.
Duodenal sources: If looking for overgrowth only.
Feces or rectal swabs
Large bowel contents
Small bowel contents
Superficial / Decubitus Ulcers and
Diabetic Foot Ulcers
Well-cleansed or post debrided material from base of ulcer (swab or curette)
Purulent material from under skin flaps or deep pocket aspirates
Surface swab
​Hardware Obtained from surgical procedure.​ ​External fixation devices
​

 

Specimen Stability Information
Specimen Type Temperature Time
Fluid/Aspirate​ Room Temperature​
Tissue Room Temperature​
​Swabs and all other specimens ​Room Temperature ​< 4 hours
​ ​Refrigerate ​> 4 hours
Rejection Criteria

Specimens not listed above as acceptable for anaerobic culture

Dry swabs, and containers not approved for anaerobic transport

Leaking specimens

Specimens > 4 days

Reference Range Information
Performing Location Reference Range
All Performing Sites No anaerobes isolated or No growth​
For more information visit:
Performing Laboratory Information
Performing Location Day(s) Test Performed Analytical Time Methodology/Instrumentation
​Marshfield Center Monday through Friday​ 5 days​ Conventional culture, standard susceptibility testing, manual or automated identification methods and nucleic acid sequence analysis as needed.
For billing questions, see Contacts
Outreach CPTs
CPT Modifier
(if needed)		 Quantity Description Comments
​87075 ​ ​ ​Culture, bacterial, anaerobic ​
​87076 ​ ​ ​Anaerobic isolate, definitive ID ​as needed
​87153 ​ ​ ​Identification by nucleic acid sequencing method ​as needed
​87185 ​ ​ Enzyme detection as needed​
​87181 ​ ​ ​Antibiotic gradient ​as needed
For most current information refer to the Marshfield Laboratory online reference manual.