Specimen Requirement

Sputum: Collect 3 specimens for culture at 8-24 hour intervals (24 hours is preferred) and include at least one first morning specimen. Submit entire collection in a sterile container.

Bronchial wash, lavage: 5-7 ml in sterile container. Avoid contaminating bronchoscope with tap water.

Blood and bone marrow: 5-10 ml in SPS (yellow top) or sodium heparin (green top) tube.

No EDTA or other preservatives. Store at room temperature and transport to the laboratory at
room temperature within 7d.

Body fluids: Submit entire collection in a sterile container.

Abdominal: 10-15 ml

Pericardial, Synovial: 3-5 ml

CSF: 2 ml

Gastric aspirate: 5-10 ml Collect a fasting early-morning specimen with sterile saline.

Add 100 mg sodium carbonate or 4% sodium hydroxide immediately to neutralize the pH.

Stool: 5 ml or 1 gram in a sterile container Submit in enteric transport media.  Avoid contamination
with urine. Stool for AFB should only be submitted for immune-compromised patients.

Swab: Not an acceptable specimen due to poor transfer of Mycobacteria from the swab to culture media. 

Tissue: 1 gram in sterile container without fixatives or preservatives.

Add enough sterile saline to prevent desiccation.  Do not wrap in gauze or send on a swab.

Urine: 40 ml in a sterile container Collect first morning void on 3 consecutive days by clean-catch
midstream or catheterization. Do not pool specimens or obtain from catheter bag.