Bacterial Culture, Intravascular Catheter Tip




Test Mnemonic

CTCUL

Primary CPT Codes

  • 87070 - QTY (1), Culture, Bacterial, Aerobic

Variable CPT Codes (dependent on findings)

  • 87077 - QTY (1), Identification, Aerobic Isolate
  • 87153 - QTY (1), Identification, Nucleic Acid Sequencing
  • 87106 - QTY (1), Identification, Yeast
  • 87181 - QTY (1), Susceptibility, Agar Dilution, per agent
  • 87184 - QTY (1), Susceptibility, Disk Method, per plate
  • 87185 - QTY (1), Susceptibility, Enzyme Detection, per enzyme
  • 87186 - QTY (1), Susceptibilty, Multi-antimicrobial
  • 87186 - QTY (1), Susceptibility, Multi-antimicrobial Phoenix
  • 87186 - QTY (1), Susceptibility, Multi-antimicrobial Sensititre
  • 87186 - QTY (1), Susceptibility, Multi-antimicrobial Vitek
  • 87182 - QTY (1), Susceptibility, Carbapenamase Enzyme detection, per isolate

LOINC ®

11475-1

Aliases

  • Cath Tip Culture
  • Catheter Culture

Performing Laboratory

Cleveland Clinic Laboratories


Specimen Requirements

Volume Type Container Collect Temperature Transport Temperature Special Instructions
OneCatheterClean containerAmbient Aseptically remove catheter and clip 5cm of distal tip directly into a sterile container.

Stability

Environmental Condition Description
Ambient24 hours
Refrigerated24 hours
FrozenUnacceptable

Days Performed

Sun - Sat

Turnaround Time

7 days

Methodology

Name Description
Culture, Identification 

Reference Range

Special Info

Culture performed on intravascular catheter tips (eg, central, CVP, Hickman, Broviac, Peripheral, arterial, umbilical, hyperalimentation, Swan-Ganz). Cleanse skin around catheter site with alcohol. Aseptically remove catheter and clip 5 cm of distal tip directly into a sterile container. If culture is positive, identification will be performed on clinically significant organisms. Antimicrobial susceptibilities are performed when indicated.

Clinical Info

Blood cultures are the essential test for diagnosing catheter-related bacteremia. The clinical relevance of catheter tip cultures is controversial. A positive culture may indicate contamination during removal.

Reflex Tests

The following additional test(s) may be ordered depending on results: