CHAPTER X. 
BACTERIOLOGICAL EXAMINATION OF IMATERIAL FROM 
THE PATIENT AND THE CADAVER. 
Material from the Living Subject. 
Blood Culture. 
Technic of Blood Cultures. 
Bacteriological Examination of Cerebro- 
spinal Fluid. 
The Examination of Peritoneal, Pleural 
and Pericardial Fluids. 
Pus. 
Examination of Urine. 
Examination of Feces. 
Examination of Sputum, of Buccal and 
Pharyngeal Material. 
Examination by Staining. 
Cultural Methods. 
Bacteriological Examination of the Eye. 
Bacteriological Examination of the Ear 
and Nose. 
The Utilization of Animals for Bacter- 
ial Diagnosis and Experimentation. 
The Inoculation of Animals. 
The successful outcome of a bacteriological examination of material 
from a patient or a cadaver depends to a large degree upon the appli- 
cation of proper technique at the time of collection. Naturally this is 
varied according to the nature of the case. 
Postmortem cultures are taken from organs or tissues usually 
indicated by the nature of the infection, and a choice of media for 
the isolation of a specific bacterium, or types of bacteria, is matle with 
this information in view. The value of a postmortem bacteriological 
examination is frequently measured by the promptness with which 
it is made after death; postmortem invasion of tissues, organs and 
even the heart and larger bloodvessels by bacteria from the mouth 
and gastro-intestinal tract takes place very quickly. Even if the 
cadaver is placed at once in a cold room, some time must elapse before 
the internal organs are cooled sufficiently to arrest bacterial growth. 
The spleen, liver, kidneys, heart and bloodvessels are more commonly 
examined for evidence of pathogenic microorganisms. The surface 
of the undisturbed organ is first seared with a hot iron, then incised 
through the sterile area, and some of the contents withdrawn in a 
platinum loop or with a sterile capillary pipette and introduced at 
once into suitable media. (The kind of media to be used is clearly set 
forth for each organism, in succeeding chapters.) Blood may be 
obtained from the heart, after searing the surface of the organ, or 
from the larger veins of the extremities. Fluid from the brain or 
spinal cord frequently contains bacteria of significance. Exudates 
from the pleural, peritoneal or pericardial cavities may be removed 
with sterile pipettes and transferred temporarily to sterile test-tubes 
or flasks. Later it is introduced with proper precautions into suitable 
media. Purulent discharges are, if small in amount, aspirated directly 
