Virology / Serology - Virus Culture
Specimen Acceptance Policy
Routine Viral Cultures:
All appropriate specimens for culture of human viruses will be accepted from both public and private providers of health care (with the exception of HSV cultures). Specimens submitted to the Virology/Serology Branch must be accompanied by a completed form (DHHS #3431). Please provide a complete submitter’s mailing address, physician name, and telephone number. Minimal essential patient information that must be provided includes:
- the patient’s first and last name
- Social Security Number
- Medicaid number
- age
- sex
- onset date
- specimen identity
- collection date
Also provide information on the suspected infectious agent(s) and/or provide the patient’s signs and symptoms.
Specimens which, for any reason, are deemed unsuitable or inappropriate for diagnostic testing will not be tested. Rejected specimens will be properly stored for seven days pending verbal and/or written notification of the submitter. Unless alternate arrangements are initiated by the submitter upon notification of specimen rejection, the specimen will be discarded at the end of the holding period.
HSV Cultures:
The HSV culture service is available only to local health departments and other state-operated health care facilities. Specimens acceptable for HSV culture are limited to the following:
- Specimens from prenatal patients who have a suspicious lesion not previously confirmed as herpes. Routine cultures in the absence of lesions will not be accepted.
- Specimens from patients presenting with an atypical lesion where a clinical distinction cannot be made between herpes, chancroid, and syphilis. Cultures done simply to confirm a clinical diagnosis of herpes are not available on a routine basis.
Specimens submitted for herpes viral culture must be accompanied by a completed submission form (DHHS #3431) that includes the clinic in which the patient was seen and the specific reason for testing, i.e., differential diagnosis of an atypical lesion, lesions in pregnant women, etc. Mark herpes simplex virus as the agent requested. Failure to supply the requested clinical patient information may result in significantly delayed specimen testing and/or rejected specimens.
Specimen Shipping
Keep clinical specimens cold (~4 degree celcius) during transit and ensure delivery to the State Laboratory within 24-48 hours of collection. Ideally, ship specimen(s) to the State Laboratory the same day collected. Although the virus transport mailer was designed for several specimens, the cost of the transport medium is negligible and unused medium can simply be discarded. Do not delay the shipment of specimens until all the vials of transport medium are used. Place the properly identified inoculated vials of transport medium into the large conical plastic shipping tubes. If all of the transport medium is not used, return the unused large conical plastic shipping tubes to maintain a tight pack and prevent breakage.
Place the two frozen ice packs into the shipping container. Place the large conical plastic tubes containing specimen(s) or tubes without specimens for a total of three tubes between the ice packs. Place the completed forms into the plastic bag and slide into the space at the narrow end of the ice packs. Replace the styrofoam lid on the box, seal the cardboard box, and attach the return pre-addressed shipping label on top of the label used to ship the kit to you. Ship the specimen to the State Laboratory by the fastest means possible.
Transport medium, refrigerated mailers, and submission forms are available from the State Laboratory Mailroom, PO Box 28047, Raleigh, North Carolina, 27611-8047, telephone: (919) 733-7656. Upon receipt, open, place transport media in refrigerator and place ice packs in freezer.
Relevant Links:
- Virus Culture
- Testing Services (PDF, 12.6 KB)
See also:
- About Virology / Serology
- Chlamydia
- HIV
- Hepatitis
- Syphilis
- Special Serology
- CDC Referral
- Arbovirus
- Norovirus
