Key points
- ÐÇ¿ÕÓéÀÖ¹ÙÍø can assist health departments and public health laboratorians upon request.
- ÐÇ¿ÕÓéÀÖ¹ÙÍø's Streptococcus Laboratory only accepts submissions from public health laboratories and other federal agencies.
- These submissions must meet certain criteria.
Overview
ÐÇ¿ÕÓéÀÖ¹ÙÍø's Streptococcus Laboratory primarily performs whole-genome sequence-based typing and characterization of streptococci and other Gram-positive catalase-negative cocci isolates.
Testing performed at ÐÇ¿ÕÓéÀÖ¹ÙÍø is intended for public health purposes only.
ÐÇ¿ÕÓéÀÖ¹ÙÍø is available to offer laboratory assistance to public health departments, particularly related to
- Streptococci with potentially novel features
- Outbreaks involving the pathogens of interest
Specimen acceptance criteria
ÐÇ¿ÕÓéÀÖ¹ÙÍø only accepts various specimen types for testing from public health laboratories and other federal agencies.
Specimens from private healthcare providers, microbiologists, and institutions must be submitted to a public health department laboratory for appropriate processing. Public health department laboratory staff can forward approved specimens to ÐÇ¿ÕÓéÀÖ¹ÙÍø for specialized testing.
Need diagnostic testing?
All requests require pre-approval
Because of limited resources, the laboratory can't provide typing or molecular characterization for all requests. Testing is prioritized for isolates or specimens where information is needed to answer pressing public health questions. An outbreak is one example where typing and strain relatedness has immediate value.
Fill out a request form
- Streptococcus pneumoniae testing
- Other Streptococcus testing
- Includes catalase-negative, Gram-positive cocci
- Includes catalase-negative, Gram-positive cocci
Specimen, documentation, packaging, and shipping
Specimen requirements vary by the specific test requested.
The following links provide information on specimen, documentation, packaging, and shipping requirements:
Receiving results from ÐÇ¿ÕÓéÀÖ¹ÙÍø
ÐÇ¿ÕÓéÀÖ¹ÙÍø's Streptococcus Laboratory sends test results (PDF format) to the appropriate state public health laboratory manually via email.
These results must be used for public health purposes only, not for diagnosis, treatment, management, or assessment of patient health. They must NOT be communicated to the patient, their care provider, or placed in the patient's medical record.