Review on Blood Culture

Abstract

Blood stream infections (BSIs) are one of the most serious problems in infectious disease. The mortality rates reported is between 20% and 50%. From a diagnostic standpoint, positive blood cultures establish an infectious etiology for a patient’s illness and reveal a microorganism for susceptibility testing. This helps the clinician to optimize the antimicrobial therapy. This article discuses the basics of blood culture from a clinician’s point of view. Blood culture is a very valuable tool for the physician in diagnosis & treatment of infections. Every care should be taken to collect & transport the blood samples in an ideal fashion to make a full utilization of this very important investigation.