A patient's vaginal specimen is sent from the walk-in clinic to the microbiology laboratory. There it is cultured on bacteriological media and then placed into an ambient air incubator set at 22% oxygen and 37 degrees Celsius. The patient is strongly suspected of having gonorrhea. She had sexual contact with a partner recently diagnosed with gonorrhea, and she is now displaying the typical symptoms of a vaginal exudate or ?uid. Neisseria gonorrhoeae is a microaerophilic gram-negative coccus-shaped bacterium. Seventy-two hours later, the culture has still not grown Neisseria gonorrhoeae so the lab reports the results back as negative. Interpret this result.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Neisseria gonorrhoeae, being a microaerophilic organism, requires environments with lower oxygen levels than what is present in ambient air (22% oxygen). The standard incubation environment for cultivating Neisseria gonorrhoeae typically involves increased CO2 (around 3-5%) and lower O2 levels than those found in ambient air, which likely explains the failure of the culture to grow.

A Patient's Vaginal Specimen Is Sent from the Walk-In Clinic