A 45-year-old female presents to the emergency department. She reports the onset of a sore throat, cough and rhinorrhea about five days ago. She is now experiencing weakness in her arms and difficulty breathing. She is evaluated in the emergency room and admitted to the intensive care unit. In the provider's initial assessment, the patient is noted to have gross inflammation of her pharynx and tonsils, with grayish-white patches in the pharynx. A throat swab and additional specimens are sent for microbial analysis. The patient is placed in isolation.
-The laboratory findings are discussed with the medical team.Culturing on specialized media will be required for definitive identification of the microbe. Which medium will the technicians use to culture this suspected pathogen?

Question

A 45-year-old female presents to the emergency department. She reports the onset of a sore throat, cough and rhinorrhea about five days ago. She is now experiencing weakness in her arms and difficulty breathing. She is evaluated in the emergency room and admitted to the intensive care unit. In the provider's initial assessment, the patient is noted to have gross inflammation of her pharynx and tonsils, with grayish-white patches in the pharynx. A throat swab and additional specimens are sent for microbial analysis. The patient is placed in isolation.
-The laboratory findings are discussed with the medical team.Culturing on specialized media will be required for definitive identification of the microbe. Which medium will the technicians use to culture this suspected pathogen?

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The gross inflammation of the pharynx and tonsils with grayish-white patches suggests a possible bacterial infection, particularly diphtheria caused by Corynebacterium diphtheriae. Tellurite medium is the specific medium used to culture C. diphtheriae for definitive identification. It contains potassium tellurite, which inhibits the growth of other bacteria and fungi, while allowing the growth of C. diphtheriae, which reduces tellurite to metallic tellurium, producing black colonies. Mannitol salt agar is used to culture Staphylococcus aureus, eosin methylene blue agar is used to culture gram-negative enteric bacteria, and the tissue culture is not necessary for C. diphtheriae.

A 45-Year-Old Female Presents to the Emergency Department