Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF) Culture

Synonyms

Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF) Culture, CSF Culture

Purpose

A cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) culture diagnoses infections from the central nervous system, including meningitis and encephalitis. The culture identifies the bacteria, fungi, or pathogen causing the infection.

In cases where you have suspected bacterial meningitis or sepsis, you can combine the CSF culture with a blood culture to determine if the infection has spread to the bloodstream. This combination will provide a broader diagnostic and help provide tailored treatment.

In addition, if you are immunocompromised, meaning you have HIV/AIDs or fungal infections like cryptococcal meningitis, you can have a fungal culture alongside the CSF culture to ensure that you account for both bacterial and fungal pathogens.

When you add the blood or fungal culture to the CSF culture, you can diagnose systematic infections and pathogens that may not be detected through a CSF analysis alone.

Patient Preparation For CSF Culture

Empty your bladder and bowels before the test.

Samples

Collect 3 – 5ml of Cerebrospinal Fluid Clean in a sterile tube. While using a lumbar puncture to collect CSF for culture, ensure you stay very still while the fluid is being drawn. Once done, keep the sample at room temperature.

Reference Range

Growth/No growth

Results Turnaround

3 – 42 days after receipt of samples

Diseases / Diagnostic Indicators

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) helps diagnose neurological conditions such as meningitis. When growth is present in your CSF culture, it indicates that you may have certain disorders, such as viral or bacterial meningitis. Meningitis causes inflammation of the membranes that surround your brain and spinal cord.

In addition, the presence of growth on CSF may be a sign of conditions such as bleeding around the brain (subarachnoid hemorrhage), which can result from aneurysms or trauma.

Furthermore, when your CSF culture shows signs of inflammation in the nervous system, an analysis can help detect autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis.

For further reading on cerebrospinal fluid analysis, you can refer to this study.