Culture And Sensitivity Aerobic Drain Fluid

This test is used to detect and analyze the type of bacteria present in the drain fluid. Drain fluid can be pus, serum or blood which has been collected from the surgical drain tubes. These surgical drain tubes are the small tubes which are often placed in the body cavities like the chest and abdomen to remove the excess fluid which might get accumulated during infections like tuberculosis, peritonitis, malignant ascites, surgical procedures etc.

What are culture and sensitivity testing?

In laboratories, the bacteria are often grown with the help of growth media (nutrient preparation which acts as a source of food for the bacteria). The grown bacteria is observed under a microscope to identify the type of bacteria. The process is called as bacterial culturing. The bacterial culturing is often used in the field of medicine to identify the species of bacteria causing the infection and to know what kind of medicines are effective in killing the bacteria and planning the treatment accordingly.

What are Surgical drain and drain fluid?

A surgical drain is a small tube which is often inserted into the body cavities like abdomen or chest to drain out the excess of blood, pus or other body secretions which would accumulate within the body cavities due to infections, surgeries, and other conditions. These secretions/fluids from the tube can be used to analyze the type of bacteria present if any and provide the necessary treatment. The surgical tube is used most common in individuals with diseases or conditions like tuberculosis, pulmonary embolism, malignant ascites, intestinal surgeries etc.

What are Bacteria, and Aerobic Bacteria:

Bacteria are the single-celled microorganisms that can live within the soil, in the ocean and also inside the human gut. They have a number of shapes such as spirals, rods, and spheres etc. Some bacteria can cause illness to the human body and some other plays a major role in the overall functioning of our ecosystem. Aerobic bacteria are the bacteria which can survive in the presence of oxygen only. In the absence of oxygen, aerobic bacteria cannot survive and can die. Some of the aerobic bacteria are Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Nocardia, Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecalis etc.

Why this test is performed?

This test may be recommended to you if you experience symptoms like abdominal distension, abdominal discomfort, weight gain, shortness of breath, reduced appetite, fever, pus or blood in the surgical sites etc. This test may be specially performed to check if the infection is due to aerobic bacteria or not. This test is also recommended to plan the treatment according to the type of bacteria. The test is also recommended to check the effectiveness of the treatment given.

The normal test results may vary depending on age, health history, medical condition, etc.

If your test results show negative it means there is no growth of aerobic bacteria.

If your test results show positive it may indicate that you may have aerobic bacterial infection in the ascitic fluid.

If you get abnormal test results, consult your doctor immediately with your lab test reports.