Blood test for sterility

A blood test for sterility has been used in medical practice for quite a long time, since it is considered the main way to determine the presence of pathogenic microorganisms in the blood. This is an integral part of the treatment, during which there is a need to prescribe antibiotics to the patient, and this analysis provides such an opportunity. Testing will show if there are bacteria in the blood. It often happens that a person is not completely healthy, but does not need strong drugs, for example, such as antibacterial ones. In the worst case, if the test is not carried out, the patient will be prescribed antibiotics, which should not be taken without reason. The test is intended to confirm the diagnosis, regulate treatment and speed up the recovery of the patient.

What is a blood test for sterility?

A blood test for sterility is a test of a blood sample taken from a patient. Such screening is needed to determine further treatment. An analysis is also prescribed if the patient has already undergone therapy with some kind of antibiotics, but the treatment did not help him. The test will help to more clearly determine the cause of the ineffectiveness of medicines. The analysis determines the presence of bacteria streptococcus, staphylococcus, E. coli, yeast and many others.

Usually, the test is repeated several times at intermediate intervals. This helps to make sure exactly what causes the patient’s disease and determine its further treatment. It is prescribed for suspected specific diseases, for example, such as: sepsis; meningitis; pustular lesions of the skin, etc.

The analysis determines the quantitative value of the existing bacterial infection. This may be a slight degree of reproduction or the development of a high degree of its activity. The test is performed to determine the cause of the patient’s poor health. It is worth noting that this is a fairly effective method, since sometimes doctors cannot make an accurate diagnosis based only on the symptoms and complaints of the patient.

Who needs to get tested?

Decreased immunity and fever may indicate the development of an infectious disease. Therefore, people who feel a sharp decline in strength, accompanied by constant temperature fluctuations, should be tested for sterility.

Testing is necessary in some specific cases:

  • poor health of the patient;
  • low immunity;
  • suspected tuberculosis;
  • suspicion of sepsis or meningitis;
  • consistently high body temperature;
  • ineffective antibiotic treatment;
  • the patient is a blood donor.

Ineffective antibiotic treatment most often indicates that you are being treated for a misdiagnosis. In order not to injure the body with medicines that will not help it in any way, it is necessary to donate blood for sterility. It is possible that you have several types of bacteria, and the antibiotic only kills one of them. In this case, complex treatment is necessary.

If a person is a donor, then he definitely needs to undergo this analysis so as not to infect the recipient. Infections that are transmitted through the blood are very persistent, so the likelihood that they are transmitted by transfusion is very high.

How do I prepare for the analysis?

The procedure is carried out in the laboratory. Doctors, through blood cultures on a certain medium, can see if you have bacteria in your body and how quickly they multiply. The types of bacteria are also determined. In order to donate blood for sterility, you need to follow only a few rules. First, do not drink alcohol and do not eat fatty foods. Second, don’t smoke. These recommendations must be observed at least a few days before the procedure. You should stop smoking a few hours before taking a blood test.

Also, patients should refrain from eating at least eight hours before the procedure. Blood is taken in the morning on an empty stomach, as this significantly increases the chances of the reliability of the test results. The analyzes will be ready within about a week (for donors, the verification period may be longer).

Sterility Test Performance

Every person wants to have good health and know that he is not a carrier of any infection. Sterility testing is especially important for people who donate blood. A donation is great, but in this case you need to think not only about your own safety, but also about the safety of the recipient. Therefore, if you regularly donate blood, you also need to regularly undergo such control.

The effectiveness of a blood test for sterility has been proven by experts. The blood donor screening system has been improved, for example, the introduction of third and fourth generation antibody assays and nucleic acid testing (NAT) 1 has reduced the risk of transmission of clinically significant viral infections. Apart from this, this simple check has reduced the risks for the transmission of bacterial infections. An ideal screening test should have extremely high diagnostic sensitivity, short testing times, and high clinical performance.

Bacterial detection systems used for screening blood components have long been used worldwide. Most countries use culture methods such as BacT/ALERT, BACTEC or Pall eBDS. These systems have high analytical sensitivity (less than 1 cfu/ml). The disadvantage of the method of checking the blood of donors is the duration of testing. Unlike patients who are tested several times in a row for their own treatment, donor blood is tested once. This check takes about seven days.

A sterility test will help determine whether an antibiotic that has been previously prescribed by your doctor is right for you or not. The advantage of high-speed bacteria detection systems is the short testing time, which allows the collection of test samples just before the patient is treated.

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