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When to Call Your Doctor... |
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Call your doctor if you experience the following symptoms:
Fever of 102 or greater
Thick, greenish mucus
Severe headache
Stiff neck
Sudden onset of symptoms
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Lab Tests
Blood tests are performed to monitor treatment as well as to diagnose.
The complete blood count (CBC): Adequacy of immune response, how many white blood cells and the relative proportion of each type are assessed with a CBC. Also tested with the CBC are your red blood cells. If your red blood cells are low, you are anemic and in need of complete evaluation by your physician.
Antibody titers: The level of antibody in the blood is a reflection of active or prior exposure to an infectious agent. Syphilis (VDRL and RPR), Helicobacter pylori and Lyme tests are examples for which titers are available.
Cultures: Bacteria from sputum, urine, blood or other fluids or tissues are isolated and grown in the lab to identify the specific organism and to assess "susceptibility" to antibiotics. The laboratory technologists test antibiotics on the bacteria, measuring the extent of killing or inhibition. A "susceptibility" report helps the doctor decide which antibiotic would be most effective.
Throat culture versus the rapid strep test: The most accurate way to diagnose strep throat is to send a sample of throat secretion to the lab. The sample is cultured to grow bacteria, including Group A beta-hemolytic strep, which causes strep throat. However, it may take two days to get the results. Doctors now use a rapid test on throat secretions that takes only a few minutes. The patient does not have to wait very long before taking antibiotics. Since the rapid test may miss 20 percent of cases of strep throat, doctors may still send off a throat culture to the lab, which provides a definitive diagnosis.
More on Bacterial Infections Blood Analysis
In the Encyclopedia: Abscess incision & drainage
Nocardiosis
X-linked agammaglobulinemia
Aminoglycosides
Anaerobic infections
This article was reviewed and updated June 2007.
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