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Preparation of a Blood Culture Pellet for Rapid Bacterial Identification and Antibiotic Susceptibility Testing
11:25

Preparation of a Blood Culture Pellet for Rapid Bacterial Identification and Antibiotic Susceptibility Testing

Published on: October 15, 2014

Selective use of blood cultures in emergency department pneumonia patients

Ronald S Benenson1, Andrew M Kepner, Donald N Pyle

  • 1Department of Emergency Medicine, York Hospital, York, Pennsylvania 17405, USA.

The Journal of Emergency Medicine
|July 17, 2007
PubMed

Insights

Blood cultures rarely yielded positive results in hospitalized pneumonia patients and did not alter treatment. Researchers suggest limiting blood cultures for community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) but continuing them for healthcare-associated pneumonia (HCAP) cases.

Area of Science:

  • Infectious Diseases
  • Clinical Microbiology
  • Hospital Epidemiology

Background:

  • Blood cultures are frequently used in managing hospitalized pneumonia patients.
  • The utility and impact of routine blood cultures in pneumonia management require evaluation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To identify factors associated with positive blood cultures in pneumonia patients.
  • To assess the impact of blood culture results on antibiotic management.
  • To evaluate the necessity of blood cultures in hospitalized pneumonia cases.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective chart review of Emergency Department patients with pneumonia.
  • Inclusion criteria: adults admitted with pneumonia, 2001-2002.
  • Exclusion criteria: age < 18, non-pneumonia discharge diagnosis.

Main Results:

  • A low rate of true positive blood cultures (3.4%) was observed.
  • Identified risk factors for positive blood cultures: low oxygen saturation (<90%), low serum sodium (<130), and high respiratory rate (>30).
  • Blood culture results did not lead to changes in empiric antibiotic coverage.

Conclusions:

  • Routine blood cultures in community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) may not be necessary due to low yield and lack of impact on management.
  • Blood cultures remain important for patients at risk for multi-drug resistant pathogens, such as healthcare-associated pneumonia (HCAP) patients.

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