Culture diagnosis of gonorrhoea--a comparison between two standard laboratory methods and a commercial gonococcal culture kit (Kvadricult)

Abstract

The efficiency of a commercial kit--Kvadricult--intended for the culture diagnosis of gonorrhoea and specially designed to simplify "bedside" inoculation, was compared in two laboratories with their standard laboratory gonococcal (GC) culture methods. The yields of specimens inoculated "bedside" were compared with those inoculated after transport for 4-18 hrs in a modified Stuart transport medium. The highest positive yield was obtained by "bedside" inoculation with approximately equal results for the conventional methods and the Kvadricult system. Compared with "bedside" inoculation, the loss of positive specimens after transport was less than 10% in one laboratory but more than 17% in the other, which was found to be due to inferiority of the GC medium used in this laboratory, the reasons for which are discussed. Prolonged transportation of specimens for 2 days increased the loss of positive specimens, rising to as much as 55% even at the laboratory with the more efficient GC medium. These losses can obviously be avoided by transport for less than 24 hours--or better still, by "bedside" inoculation. From this point of view we have found the Kvadricult system efficient and easy to handle.