Procedures for Collection, Preparation, and Shipment of Microbiological Specimens 
GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS 
1. Basic Principles. In obtaining and submitting 
diagnostic specimens, basic principles should be 
observed. Principles applicable to specimens 
submitted for isolation and identification of the 
etiologic agent include: 
a. Select appropriate specimens. 
b. Obtain specimens as early in the illness as 
possible. 
c. Identify the specimen properly. 
d. Request specific test(s) desired or indicate 
etiologic agent suspected. 
e. Protect viability of organisms during transit. 
Other principles applicable to specimens sub- 
mitted for serological examination are: 
a. Collect blood and serum samples in sterile 
tubes and maintain sterility in handling. Use 
leakproof stoppers on all tubes. 
b. Collect paired specimens at appropriate in- 
tervals because, with a few exceptions, they 
are desirable and because, in suspected viral 
infections, they are mandatory. Since a rise 
in antibody titer is a more reliable diagnostic 
sign than the mere presence of antibodies, 
the first specimen should be collected as 
early after onset as possible and the second, 
usually two or three weeks later. 
c. Protect whole blood from freezing under 
any circumstances. 
In general, specimens submitted as smears for 
examination should: 
a. Be allowed to dry completely. 
b. Be packed properly to prevent breakage. 
2. Infectious Diagnostic Specimens. Rapid trans- 
port of infectious diagnostic specimens is of vital 
importance in communicable disease control. 
Fortunately, no regulations hamper such move- 
ment as long as one follows the rigid Postal 
Regulations which pertain to the preparation of 
the specimen for shipment. 
The NCDC defines infectious diagnostic speci- 
mens as: 
a. All specimens of human or animal excreta, 
secreta, tissue, tissue fluids, or hair which 
contain or are suspected of containing the 
live causative agent of a human disease or 
an animal disease transmissible to man, and 
which are shipped or mailed to a diagnostic 
or research laboratory for isolation and 
identification of the etiological agent. 
b. Pure cultures or concentrated isolates or 
vectors of etiological agents shipped from 
the isolating or collecting laboratory to a 
specialty laboratory for identification and 
typing, or further research, or both. 
c. Pure cultures of known etiological agents 
which are used as reference cultures or as 
antigens in diagnostic laboratory procedures. 
3. Identification of Specimens. Identify individual 
specimen tubes or containers by encircling them 
with typed or penciled legends on adhesive tape. 
Give patient’s name, type of specimen, and date 
of collection. This is particularly important with 
clear fluids and paired sera. Ink, hall-point pen, 
wax, or indelible pencil should not be used be- 
cause writing done with them becomes illegible. 
Include with the shipment a legible copy of a list 
of the specimens giving identifying name or 
number, date obtained, and tests desired. 
4. Packaging of Specimens. Proper packaging not 
only protects the specimen in transit but also 
the personnel handling it. Protection is espe- 
cially important in the case of breakage. 
Never Mail Viable Specimens in Petri Plates. 
Never Enclose Dry Ice in 
Hermetically Sealed Containers. 
A safe packaging procedure which complies 
with Public Health Service Regulations and the 
requirements of the Universal Postal Union 
follows: 
a. Enclose the specimen in a bottle or tube of 
thick glass sealed with a rubber stopper or 
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