All issues > Volume 41(7); 1998

Original Article

J Korean Pediatr Soc. 1998;41(7):917-922. Published online July 15, 1998.

Optimal Number of Blood Cultures and Volume of Blood Needed to Detect Bacteremia in Children

Jong Jae JJ Kim¹, Cheol Am CA Kim¹, Sang Ho SH Baik¹, Eui Tak ET Oh¹, Hong Ja HJ Kang¹, Kil Seo KS Kim¹

¹Department of Pediatrics, Dae Dong Hospital, Pusan, Korea

Correspondence Jong Jae JJ Kim ,Email: 1

Abstract

Purpose
: We compared pathogen recovery rates by obtaining two blood cultures instead of one blood culture containing 1ml and collecting a larger volume, 1 to 3ml.
Methods
: Total of 750 blood specimens from 250 patients with fever, a temperature higher than 39℃ and suspected bacteremia were obtained. Each patient had two samples of blood, A(1ml) and B(4ml), obtained at 30-minute interval from separate sites of extremities and B was divided into B1(1ml) and B2(3ml). Each sample was inoculated into aerobic culture media. Patients were excluded if two samples of blood were not obtained or if the isolate represented a contaminant.
Results
: A pathogen was isolated in 19(7.6%) of 250 patients and 37(4.9%) of 750 specimens. In 7 patients, the pathogen was isolated with all the culture methods and in 12 patients, one or more of the cultures yielded no growth. The pathogen recovery rates were 53%(10/19) in A and B1, 89%(17/19) in B2 and 68%(13/19) in A＋B1. No difference was detected between A or B1 and A＋B1(P>0.05) and the pathogen recovery rate for B2 was significantly greater than that for A or B1(P<0.05), but no significant differences were found in pathogen recovery when B2 was compared with A＋B1.
Conclusion
: Increasing volume of blood from 1 to 3ml inoculated into blood culture bottles improves detection of bacteremia in pediatric patients and spares patients the cost and pain of an additional venipuncture.

Keywords :Blood culture, Number, Volume