Blood Culture Procedure
Blood culture refers to a medical procedure that involves the collection and observation of a blood sample from a person’s body. This is done by examining the blood in a pathological lab to detect the presence of infectious bacteria or other microorganisms in the body. Since the bloodstream is a sterile environment in normal circumstances, the detection of pathogens in the blood is not difficult. Thus, a blood culture is useful to diagnose microbial infections that may adversely affect the normal functioning of vital organs like lungs, kidneys, liver, gallbladder, and heart. It also helps detect infections that may compromise the natural immune system of the body more seriously and lead to chronic degenerative ailments like AIDS and cancer.
Preparation for Blood Culture
No special preparation is required before you get your blood tested through this procedure. Your doctor may ask you to temporarily discontinue the intake of blood-thinning medicines or antibiotics that may suppress the growth of microorganisms for a short while. The blood sample is collected from a person by making a minute puncture in a vein, usually the one that is present in the inner side of the elbow joint. The area is first cleaned by rubbing the skin gently with a ball of cotton wool dipped in an antiseptic solution. A small amount of blood is withdrawn using a sterilized needle that is attached to an airtight vial or tube. The medical assistant may also use an elastic band on your upper arm to put extra pressure on the blood flowing into the vein from which the blood sample is to be collected and make it more prominent beneath the skin. Once the blood sample has been collected, the elastic band is removed and the bleeding from the punctured vein is stopped by pressing a piece of cotton wool against the skin. The entire process is quite painless and hardly takes more than a few minutes.
Following this, the blood sample is kept in a small tray in the presence of certain chemicals that provide the pathogens, if any, a suitable environment to breed faster. This process of blood “culture” facilitates the detection of microbes in the sample quite easily when it is observed under a microscope or by means of a few additional chemical tests. Sometimes, more than one blood sample from different parts of a person’s body may be collected and examined in this manner in order to make a correct diagnosis.