Blood culture

Injury	Disease	Nutrition	Poison

Symptoms	Surgery	Test	Special Topic

Overview

Risks

Results

Blood culture

Alternative Names:

Culture - blood

Normal Values:

There is no growth of microorganisms in the culture medium.

What abnormal results mean:

Positive results usually mean that infectious microorganisms are evident in the bloodstream. Sometimes it is just a contaminating bacteria, not a true infection, thus a false-positive. Your health care provider should be able to help you determine if it is a true infection or a contaminant.

Review Date: 2/10/2006
Reviewed By: Kenneth Wener, M.D., Division of Infectious Diseases, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

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