The Value of Microbiological Cultures: When to Perform Them and How to Read Them

Microbiology is integrated in general surgical practice, and a knowledge of basic microbiology is essential for appropriate and safe surgical practice. The field of microbiology is extremely wide and detailed knowledge of microbiological tests is not mandatory for a surgeon. Nonetheless, a surgeon should ensure that sampling technique, specimen storage before transportation, and specimen transportation are managed properly. When the preanalytical specimen management is not performed correctly, the microbiological results will be influenced, and interpretation could be misleading. The results of microbial examination may be utilized for two purposes: (1) diagnosis and therapy of infection in individual patient and (2) support to the healthcare-associated infections control in the hospital. The surgeon is responsible for correct indication of microbiological examination. The results of microbiological testing may have great importance for the choice of therapeutic strategy for every individual patient, in particular in the adaptation of targeted antimicrobial therapy. The surgeon should be aware of current recommendation for microbial screening of surgical patients. The proper interpretation of microbiological results is one of the most challenging duties of clinical microbiology laboratory - thus, a collaboration between the microbiologist and the surgeon is an essential requirement.