Background: Nurses are responsible for the collection of sputum samples for culture in most
institutions, yet they receive little formal training on what a good specimen looks like …

The clinical usefulness of sputum cultures depends on the quality of specimens submitted to
the laboratory. In a community hospital, during two separate surveillance periods, we …

We assessed whether expectorated sputum samples are ordered according to national
guidelines and the impact of culture results on patient management. Overall, guidelines for …

We compared examination of unstained and Gram-stained smears as methods of evaluating
sputum quality. Of 100 slides examined, 96 (96%) were graded identically. Each …

A series of 391 unselected expectorated sputum specimens was examined microscopically,
and six different published criteria for judging the acceptability of the specimens were …

Sputum is one of the most commonly received specimens in the microbiology laboratory.
However, the authors are unaware of previously published data on how useful sputum, sent …

Only 13 of 38 hospital laboratories surveyed include a Gram stain routinely in
microbiological sputum examination. In a prospective three-hospital study, 60% of over …

Background: Sputum Gram stains and cultures are standard tests for the diagnosis of lower
respiratory tract infections. Analysis reports of the sputum quality are scarce in relation to …

Sputum analysis and culture is the most common method of specific diagnosis of lower
respiratory tract infections. Culture of a properly screened, expectorated sputum sample will …

Routine bacterial sputum culture results from September 1987 through August 1988 were
reviewed to determine the relationship of patient location and physician on specimen …