Abstract
A comparative study of 1371 blood samples was done using both a centrifuge blood culture tube developed by Dorn and Smith,1 and a conventional two-bottle system (Vacutainer, Becton-Dickinson, Rutherford, NJ). A total of 90 cultures (6.6% of total) were positive by both techniques; 50 cultures (3.7% of total) were positive only by the centrifuge system; and 30 cultures (2.2% of total) were positive only in the culture bottles. The centrifuged specimens had the advantages of better visibility, improved differentiation of mixed cultures and the ability to quantitate relative numbers of bacteria per milliliter in a sample. While the centrifuged specimens involved more setup time, the average time to achieve a pure culture was shortened and reading of the culture was simplified, with a net time savings. Education of the staff in carrying out proper collection techniques improved the initially high contamination rate.
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