Specimen Requirements

Specimen must arrive within 2 hours of collection.

1. Insert sterile swab into nares.
2. Rotate swab against nasal mucosa or lesion.

3. When using sterile swab(s), follow instructions on swab packaging. In some instances, only 1 sterile swab is used to collect specimen. In these instances, discard remaining swab.
4. Label swab tube (not packaging) with patient’s information, date and actual time of collection, and type of specimen.
5. Maintain sterility and forward promptly.

Note:  1. Anterior nose cultures should only be used to detect carrier states or for nasal lesions.
2. Maximum storage of specimen is 24 hours refrigerated.