Skip to main content
NCBI home page
Journal of Clinical Pathology logoLink to Journal of Clinical Pathology
. 1979 Dec;32(12):1222–1225. doi: 10.1136/jcp.32.12.1222

Culture diagnosis of meningococcal carriers: yield from different sites and influence of storage in transport medium.

P Olcén, J Kjellander, D Danielsson, B L Lindquist
PMCID: PMC1145939  PMID: 119792

Abstract

Different specimens and techniques have been used in the diagnosis of carriers of Neisseria meningitidis, reflecting the uncertainty about the optimal diagnostic procedure. In the present investigation the culture yield of meningococci from throat specimens was compared to that from nasopharyngeal speimens in 178 persons: 44 carriers were diagnosed. All of them were detected by culture of throat specimens while 34% of them would have remained undiagnosed if only nasopharyngeal specimens had been examined. Storage of throat specimens in a transport medium for 24 hours before culture gave a negative culture for meningococci in 41% of the carriers. This loss was surprisingly high, the reasons for which are discussed.

Full text

PDF
1222

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Danielsson D., Johannisson G. Culture diagnosis of gonorrhoea. A comparison of the yield with selective and non-selective gonococcal culture media inoculated in the clinic and after transport of specimens. Acta Derm Venereol. 1973;53(1):75–80. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Danielsson D., Sandström E., Kjellander J., Moi H., Wallmark G. Culture diagnosis of gonorrhoea--a comparison between two standard laboratory methods and a commercial gonococcal culture kit (Kvadricult). Acta Derm Venereol. 1978;58(1):69–73. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Danielsson D., Sandström E. Serology of Neisseria gonorrhoeae. Demonstration of strain-specific antigens by immunoelectrophoresis, immunofluorescence and co-agglutination techniques. Acta Pathol Microbiol Scand B. 1979 Feb;87B(1):55–64. doi: 10.1111/j.1699-0463.1979.tb02403.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Fraser P. K., Bailey G. K., Abbott J. D., Gill J. B., Walker D. J. The meningococcal carrier-rate. Lancet. 1973 Jun 2;1(7814):1235–1237. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(73)90541-2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Gästrin B., Kallings L. O., Marcetic A. The survival time for different bacteria in various transport media. Acta Pathol Microbiol Scand. 1968;74(3):371–380. doi: 10.1111/j.1699-0463.1968.tb03490.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Hoeffler D. F. Recovery of Neisseria meningitidis from the nasopharynx. Comparison of two techniques. Am J Dis Child. 1974 Jul;128(1):54–56. doi: 10.1001/archpedi.1974.02110260056009. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Holten E., Bratlid D., Bøvre K. Carriage of Neisseria meningitidis in a semi-isolated arctic community. Scand J Infect Dis. 1978;10(1):36–40. doi: 10.3109/inf.1978.10.issue-1.08. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Jacobson J. A., Chester T. J., Fraser D. W. An epidemic of disease due to serogroup B Neisseria meningitidis in Alabama: report of an investigation and community-wide prophylaxis with a sulfonamide. J Infect Dis. 1977 Jul;136(1):104–108. doi: 10.1093/infdis/136.1.104. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. KELLOGG D. S., Jr, PEACOCK W. L., Jr, DEACON W. E., BROWN L., PIRKLE D. I. NEISSERIA GONORRHOEAE. I. VIRULENCE GENETICALLY LINKED TO CLONAL VARIATION. J Bacteriol. 1963 Jun;85:1274–1279. doi: 10.1128/jb.85.6.1274-1279.1963. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Martin J. E., Jr, Peacock W. L., Jr, Thayer J. D. Further studies with a selective medium for cultivating Neisseria gonorrhoeae. Br J Vener Dis. 1965 Sep;41(3):199–201. doi: 10.1136/sti.41.3.199. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Olcén P., Danielsson D., Kjellander J. Laboratory identification of pathogenic Neisseria with special regard to atypical strains: an evaluation of sugar degradation, immunofluorescence and co-agglutination tests. Acta Pathol Microbiol Scand B. 1978 Dec;86B(6):327–334. doi: 10.1111/j.1699-0463.1978.tb00052.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. SLATERUS K. W., RUYS A. C., SIEBERG I. G. TYPES OF MENINGOCOCCI ISOLATED FROM CARRIERS AND PATIENTS IN A NON-EPIDEMIC PERIOD IN THE NETHERLANDS. Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek. 1963;29:265–271. doi: 10.1007/BF02046068. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Sivonen A., Renkonen O. V., Weckström P., Koskenvuo K., Raunio V., Mäkelä P. H. The effect of chemoprophylactic use of rifampin and minocycline on rates of carriage of Neisseria meningitidis in army recruits in Finland. J Infect Dis. 1978 Mar;137(3):238–244. doi: 10.1093/infdis/137.3.238. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. THAYER J. D., MARTIN J. E., Jr A SELECTIVE MEDIUM FOR THE CULTIVATION OF N. GONORRHOEAE AND N. MENINGITIDIS. Public Health Rep. 1964 Jan;79:49–57. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Journal of Clinical Pathology are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES