THE MICROBIOLOGICAL SWAB SAMPLER ‐ A QUANTITATIVE EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATION

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Abstract
The aim of the investigation was to give an in vitro experimental account of the commonly used cotton swab as a sampler for quantitative determination of bacteria in operation wounds. The transfer of staphylococci with the swab from an inoculated to a non-inoculated agar culture plate was used as a model and 3 different ways of swab handling were tested. A direct transfer of 19% staphylococci from the inoculated to the non-inoculated plate was found. When the swab was rinsed in a small volume of saline and the rinsing fluid was plated, 39% were transferred. When the swab was kept in a Stuart transport medium, as is the usual procedure in clinical practice, only 4% were transferred. Quantitative wound swab cultures depend on a thorough sampling of the wound and an efficient recovery of bacteria from the swab. The use of a Stuart transport medium would appear to hamper quantitative determination and a rinsing procedure should be preferred.

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