Specimen Requirements
Title
Gastrointestinal Profile, Stool, PCR
Specimen Requirement
If possible, allow patient to urinate before collecting stool specimen to avoid contaminating the stool with urine. Catch the stool specimen in a clean, empty wide-mouthed container or stool hat. Toilet water and urine cannot be combined with stool. Within 1 hour of collection transfer the stool into an orange-labeled Para-PakĀ® vial using the spoon affixed to the vial cap, taking care not to let the volume in the vial exceed the RED fill-line on the side of the label. Do not overfill. Cap the vial and shake 10 times to ensure complete distribution of the stool into the preservative.
Methodology
Polymerase chain reaction (PCR)
Stability
Room temp: 4 days, Refrigerated: 4 days
Reference Range
The reference ranges are determined by the performing laboratory and will show on the report.
Turnaround
2-3 days
Clinical Use
Test Includes:
Adenovirus F 40/41; astrovirus; Campylobacter; Clostridium difficile toxin A/B; Cryptosporidium; Cyclospora cayetanensis; E coli O157; Entamoeba histolytica; enteroaggregative E coli (EAEC); enteropathogenic E coli (EPAC); enterotoxigenic E coli (ETEC) lt/st; Giardia lamblia; norovirus GI/GII; Plesiomonas shigelloides; rotavirus A; Salmonella; Sapovirus; Shiga-like toxin-producing E coli (STEC) stx1/stx2; Shigella/enteroinvasive E coli (EIEC); Vibrio; Vibrio cholerae; Yersinia enterocolitica
Test Code
GASTR