An assessment of the downstream implications of blood culture collection and transit

This study aims to explore the effect of transit times (TT) and culture volume, on time to microbiological diagnosis and patient outcomes. Blood cultures received between 1st March and 31st July 2020/21 were identified. TT, time in incubator (TII), and for positive samples, request to positivity times (RPT) were calculated. Demographic details were recorded for all samples, and culture volume, length of stay (LoS), and 30-day mortality for patients with positive samples. Statistical analysis examined how culture volume and TT effected culture positivity and outcome; in the context of the 4-h national TT target. Totally, 14,375 blood culture bottles were received from 7367 patients; 988 (13.4%) were positive for organisms. There was no significant difference between TT of negative and positive samples. The RPT was significantly lower for samples with TT  <  4 h (p <  0.001). Culture bottle volume did not affect RPT (p = 0.482) or TII (p = 0.367). A prolonged TT was associated with a longer length-of-stay in those with a bacteraemia with a significant organism (p = 0.001). We found shorter blood culture transportation time was associated with a significantly faster time of positive culture reporting, while optimal blood culture volume did not make a significant impact. Delays in reporting for significant organisms correspond to a prolonged LoS. Laborato ry centralisation makes achieving the 4-h target a logistical challenge; however, this data suggest...
Source: European Journal of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases - Category: Microbiology Source Type: research