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HelpTest Code PCRST Enteric Pathogen PCR
Additional Codes
Epic: LAB12823
Specimen Required
•Cary Blair Transport Medium •Sterile container
Specimen Minimum Volume
•Preferred Specimen: Liquid or Soft stool submitted in
Cary Blair Transport Media (add to fill line)
•Other Acceptable Specimen:>1ml Liquid or Soft stool
submitted in a Sterile container
Clinical Significance
Interpretation: Detection of a pathogen suggests an infectious
cause of diarrhea. However, diarrhea may be caused by a number of
pathogens and other factors.
A positive PCR result does not necessarily indicate the presence of
viable organisms. Positive results do not rule out co-infection
with other organisms that are not detected by this test.
This PCR panel does not differentiate between Shigella spp. and
Enteroinvasive Escherichia coli (EIEC), which are closely related
and may cause similar illness.
It is not recommended for stool pathogen tests to be ordered on
inpatients who have been hospitalized for >3 days. Community
acquired enteric pathogens are an unlikely cause of new symptoms.
If the admitting diagnosis was not gastroenteritis, and no other
risk factors exist, the ordering provider should consider
alternative causes for diarrhea.
Specimen Stability Information
Samples can be stored for up to 48 h at 2-25 °C and up to 5 days at 2-8 °C. However, if not placed immediately into Cary Blair transport media and received within 48 hours of collection, organisms may not be viable for serotyping/additional workup.
Specimen Instructions
Patient should pass stool into a clean, dry, container mounted on the toilet for this purpose. Stool must not touch liquid in the toilet. Submitting sites must add the stool to the fill line on Cary Blair transport media prior to shipping and ASAP.
SETUP SCHEDULE
Daily
INCLUDES
PCR for Salmonella, Shigella/EIEC, Campylobacter, and Shiga Toxins 1 and 2.
TRANSPORT/STORAGE CONDITION
Refrigerated
Clinical Reference
Negative for bacterial intestinal pathogens
Method Description
Real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for the amplification of SpaO, a Campylobacter specific tuf gene sequence, ipaH, stx 1a and stx 2a
Analytic Time
1-2 Days
Reject Due To
Specimen received on a diaper or scraped from a diaper are
unacceptable.
Rejection will occur for the following reasons: improperly labeled
specimen, insufficient volume, specimen not submitted in
appropriate transport container
Limitations
Rule out of additional bacterial pathogens requires notification of the laboratory or additional test ordering prior to sample submission. These organisms may require special growth media and separate orders and may include: Aeromonas, Vibrio, Yersinia, Plesiomonas, Staphylococcus, Pseudomonas
Category
Molecular