Culture Results & Clinic Visit

[Ratatosk]

We've never really been happy with our local CF clinic, which recently apparently became accreditted. Crowded community waiting room, etc. We haven't been back since last Spring. Keep cancelling our appointments and they reschedule. We finally made an appointment with our regular pediatrician who is head of the local CF Clinic last week.

Just told him we weren't comfortable going to the CF clinic and would prefer just seeing the individual doctors. Don't know why I was so nervous.

Got a verbal on DS's culture results yesterday and I've requested a copy of the report, so I can send it on to our CF doctor in the City. But sounds like normal epiphilial cells -- no pseudo, no HIB.... Exciting news!

Back of my mind I wonder -- does he really culture these things, or because of the large volume of CF cultures on clinic days are there some cross contamination issues going on with the samples..

 

[Ratatosk]

We've never really been happy with our local CF clinic, which recently apparently became accreditted. Crowded community waiting room, etc. We haven't been back since last Spring. Keep cancelling our appointments and they reschedule. We finally made an appointment with our regular pediatrician who is head of the local CF Clinic last week.

Just told him we weren't comfortable going to the CF clinic and would prefer just seeing the individual doctors. Don't know why I was so nervous.

Got a verbal on DS's culture results yesterday and I've requested a copy of the report, so I can send it on to our CF doctor in the City. But sounds like normal epiphilial cells -- no pseudo, no HIB.... Exciting news!

Back of my mind I wonder -- does he really culture these things, or because of the large volume of CF cultures on clinic days are there some cross contamination issues going on with the samples..

 

[Ratatosk]

We've never really been happy with our local CF clinic, which recently apparently became accreditted. Crowded community waiting room, etc. We haven't been back since last Spring. Keep cancelling our appointments and they reschedule. We finally made an appointment with our regular pediatrician who is head of the local CF Clinic last week.

Just told him we weren't comfortable going to the CF clinic and would prefer just seeing the individual doctors. Don't know why I was so nervous.

Got a verbal on DS's culture results yesterday and I've requested a copy of the report, so I can send it on to our CF doctor in the City. But sounds like normal epiphilial cells -- no pseudo, no HIB.... Exciting news!

Back of my mind I wonder -- does he really culture these things, or because of the large volume of CF cultures on clinic days are there some cross contamination issues going on with the samples..

 

[folione]

We've had similar wonders about our son's cultures: two or three times he's cultured PsA but each time he had no symptoms at all, including results of bronchoscopy flushing/culturing - which made us wonder. I don't think so much that maybe his culture swab had sloppy handling in the lab - I think lab handling protocols are probably the first thing a hospital has to do right; but I wonder more about the fact that throat swabs could be picking up a germ that landed in my boy's mouth but never went anyplace...i.e. given that PsA is everywhere and that my boy is a tot with the usual penchant for touching everything, eating dirt, etc.....

It makes feel like the next time a culture comes back ugly, we'll be more aggressive about avoiding anything invasive or hospital admission unless there are other signs/symptoms...it's a tough call, though, since we of course don't want to let anything get a foothold.

 

[folione]

We've had similar wonders about our son's cultures: two or three times he's cultured PsA but each time he had no symptoms at all, including results of bronchoscopy flushing/culturing - which made us wonder. I don't think so much that maybe his culture swab had sloppy handling in the lab - I think lab handling protocols are probably the first thing a hospital has to do right; but I wonder more about the fact that throat swabs could be picking up a germ that landed in my boy's mouth but never went anyplace...i.e. given that PsA is everywhere and that my boy is a tot with the usual penchant for touching everything, eating dirt, etc.....

It makes feel like the next time a culture comes back ugly, we'll be more aggressive about avoiding anything invasive or hospital admission unless there are other signs/symptoms...it's a tough call, though, since we of course don't want to let anything get a foothold.

 

[folione]

We've had similar wonders about our son's cultures: two or three times he's cultured PsA but each time he had no symptoms at all, including results of bronchoscopy flushing/culturing - which made us wonder. I don't think so much that maybe his culture swab had sloppy handling in the lab - I think lab handling protocols are probably the first thing a hospital has to do right; but I wonder more about the fact that throat swabs could be picking up a germ that landed in my boy's mouth but never went anyplace...i.e. given that PsA is everywhere and that my boy is a tot with the usual penchant for touching everything, eating dirt, etc.....

It makes feel like the next time a culture comes back ugly, we'll be more aggressive about avoiding anything invasive or hospital admission unless there are other signs/symptoms...it's a tough call, though, since we of course don't want to let anything get a foothold.

 

[Ratatosk]

Early on I wondered if he cultured pseudo in his sinuses, because a couple times he had a sinus infection, head cold. But then there've been times when we think, hey, he's doing great --- no boogery nose, no upper respiratory issues --- he's going to have a clear culture this time. And he cultures it.

The first time they did a culture at the CF clinic, the pulmonologist threw a fit because "the lab handled the cultures incorrectly". You'd think on CF clinic days, they'd handle them properly. The same person does the cultures. They have the head of the respiratory therapy department do them and I've never seen him handle the swabs improperly... Guess we'll see what happens with future cultures. He's not really a phlegmy kid, so might be an issue of getting enough of a sample, too.

 

[Ratatosk]

Early on I wondered if he cultured pseudo in his sinuses, because a couple times he had a sinus infection, head cold. But then there've been times when we think, hey, he's doing great --- no boogery nose, no upper respiratory issues --- he's going to have a clear culture this time. And he cultures it.

The first time they did a culture at the CF clinic, the pulmonologist threw a fit because "the lab handled the cultures incorrectly". You'd think on CF clinic days, they'd handle them properly. The same person does the cultures. They have the head of the respiratory therapy department do them and I've never seen him handle the swabs improperly... Guess we'll see what happens with future cultures. He's not really a phlegmy kid, so might be an issue of getting enough of a sample, too.

 

[Ratatosk]

Early on I wondered if he cultured pseudo in his sinuses, because a couple times he had a sinus infection, head cold. But then there've been times when we think, hey, he's doing great --- no boogery nose, no upper respiratory issues --- he's going to have a clear culture this time. And he cultures it.

The first time they did a culture at the CF clinic, the pulmonologist threw a fit because "the lab handled the cultures incorrectly". You'd think on CF clinic days, they'd handle them properly. The same person does the cultures. They have the head of the respiratory therapy department do them and I've never seen him handle the swabs improperly... Guess we'll see what happens with future cultures. He's not really a phlegmy kid, so might be an issue of getting enough of a sample, too.