| (Microbiology) |
| Investigations | Atypical Pneumonia This PCR detects three of the atypical organisms that cause pneumonia: Chlamydophila pneumoniae, Legionella pneumophila, and Mycoplasma pneumoniae. Molecular Tests Atypical Pneumonia PCR |
Inform lab before sending | No | Specimen type | Nasopharyngeal aspirate: Collected in a sterile leak-proof container. Bronchoalveolar lavage: Collected in a sterile leak-proof container. Swabs: Take a nose and then a trhoat swab and put both in the single green-topped Virocult tube before returning it to the Virology laboratory. REMEL swab (RED CAPPED) collection kits are a suitable alternative swab collection kit. |
Ideal time to take specimen | Labelling requirements | click here | How to take the specimen | Nose swab - tilt the patient's head back and gently insert the swab along the medial part of the nasal septum, as far as possible. Rotate the swab several times and then remove and put it into the Virocult tube - you will need to break the shaft of the swab to fit inside the tube. Throat swab - vigorously swab only the posterior pharyngeal wall and put it into the Virocult tube. |
Transport to the laboratory | If transport is delayed then store at +4°C | Test Times | Daily | Turnround | 3 working days | Additional information | Bacterial Transport Media (blue swabs), cannot be processed my molecular diagnostic methods. |
| Additional Examination Requests | click here |