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Appl Environ Microbiol. 1968 March; 16(3): 506-508
Copyright © 1968 American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Direct Comparison of the N-Acetyl-L-Cysteine-Sodium Hydroxide and the Trisodium Phosphate Digestion Methods for the Culture of Mycobacteria

Blackburn Laboratory, St. Elizabeths Hospital, U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, Washington, D.C. 20032

ABSTRACT

Comparison of sputum digestion procedures utilizing acetylcysteine-sodium hydroxide (AC) and trisodium phosphate for the isolation and culture of mycobacteria indicated that the AC procedure provides faster growth, thus permitting the earlier detection of positives. Also, in untreated patients and those in whom treatment has been recently instituted, the number of positives was slightly larger with the use of the AC procedure. However, of greater interest was finding that the AC procedure provided a larger quantity of positive cultures with sputum from subjects who had been intensively treated with antimicrobials and other drugs. Contamination was higher with the AC procedure, but when the sputa were diluted 1:10 this interference due to contamination was decreased.

¹ From the Mead Johnson Research Center, Evansville, Ind. 47721.