28-30 days after setup at PeaceHealth Laboratories’ reference lab
CPT Code:
87081-90 / 87206-90
Specimen Collection Details
Collection:
First week of illness: One 10 mL green top tube (sodium heparin), or one 6 mL grey top tube (sodium fluoride/potassium oxalate), or CSF. After first week: 10 mL urine which must be neutralized within 20 minutes of collection. Specimen must reach reference lab within 72 hours of collection.
Handling:
Blood: keep as whole blood; do not centrifuge. Urine: Neutralize to pH 7.0 by adding either sodium hydroxide or sterile HCL within 20 minutes of collection.
Stability:
All specimens stable ambient.
Standard Volume:
10 mL blood or urine; 1 mL CSF.
Minimum Volume:
1.5 mL blood or urine; 0.5 mL CSF.
Transport:
Ambient.
Comments:
During week one of disease, leptospires are most successfully detected by culture of blood and CSF. After this time and for several months thereafter, leptospires may be intermittently shed in the urine. Spinal fluid obtained during the acute phase of the disease can also be cultured.
Rejection Criteria:
Urine not neutralized within 20 minutes of collection; centrifuged blood; CSF supernatant; frozen specimen.
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