Pre test Information : No Special Preparation Needed

A test called a sputum culture looks for bacteria or any other kind of organism that might be infecting your lungs or the airways leading to your lungs. Sputum, sometimes referred to as phlegm, is a viscous mucus produced in your lungs. You may cough up sputum if you have an infection or a long-term condition that affects your lungs or airways.

Spit and saliva are not the same as sputum. Sputum is made up of immune system cells that support your body's defences against bacteria, fungi, and other foreign invaders in your lungs and airways. Sputum's thickness aids in capturing the foreign object. It can then be coughed out thanks to the cilia (tiny hairs) in the airways, which push it out the mouth.

Sputum can come in a variety of hues. The colours can be used to determine what kind of infection you could have or whether a chronic condition has gotten worse:

• Clear. This typically indicates that there is no disease present, but significant volumes of clean sputum could indicate lung disease.
• grey or white While larger levels could indicate lung disease, this could simply be benign.
• dark green or yellow. It frequently denotes a bacterial infection, such pneumonia. Sputum that is yellowish-green in colour is also typical in cystic fibrosis patients. Mucus builds up in the lungs and other organs due to the hereditary condition cystic fibrosis.
• Brown. This frequently manifests in smokers. It is likewise a typical indicator of black lung disease. If you are exposed to coal dust for an extended period of time, you could get black lung disease, a dangerous ailment.
• Pink. This could indicate pulmonary edoema, a disease where extra fluid accumulates in the lungs. A common symptom of congestive heart failure is pulmonary edoema.
• Red. This could be a precursor to lung cancer. It might also indicate a pulmonary embolism, a potentially fatal illness in which a blood clot from the leg or another body area escapes and goes to the lungs. Call 911 or get emergency medical help if you are coughing up red or bloody sputum.

Other titles are regular sputum culture, bacterial sputum culture, and respiratory culture.

What does it serve?

Most frequently, a sputum culture is employed for

• Locate and identify any bacteria or fungus that might be responsible for an infection in the lungs or airways.
• Check to see if a recurring lung condition has gotten worse
• Check to see if the infection treatment is effective.

A Gram stain test is frequently used in conjunction with a sputum culture. A Gram stain is a test that looks for bacteria in bodily fluids like blood or urine or at the probable site of an infection. It might assist in determining the precise kind of infection you could have.

Why is a sputum culture necessary?

If you exhibit signs of pneumonia or any severe infection of the lungs or airways, you could require this test. These consist of:

 excessive sputum production during the cough

• Fever
• Chills
• breathing difficulty
• chest ache that worsens when you cough or breathe deeply
• fatigue and confusion, particularly in the elderly

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