Written by Dr. Savannah Muncy

Your diagnosis may lie in the poo

Ugh! Cramps, nausea, vomiting, unexplained diarrhea. You’re probably wondering what in the world is making you feel like crap—no pun intended. Maybe it’s something you ate. Maybe it’s your irritable bowel disease acting up.

Or maybe—just maybe—you have pathogenic bacteria wreaking havoc in your intestines.

Ruling out other causes behind your symptoms

Because the symptoms for intestinal pathogenic bacteria are very similar to the classic symptoms of other digestive issues, it’s important to rule out other causes for your unpleasant symptoms. How do you do that? By swabbing your poop!

Swab Culture Test

Swabs are used to culture bacteria that are causing an infection and making you sick. Our Swab Culture Test can be used for culturing stool, skin, urine, or any other body parts or secretions EXCEPT blood.

A lot of the intestinal bacteria, including E. coli, live in our intestines and are considered “good” bacteria; however, some of the strains can make us sick.1 The same is true for other bacterial infections identified in the Swab Culture Test.

Because the symptoms of a parasitic infection closely mimic the symptoms of an intestinal pathogenic bacterial infection, the Swab Culture Test is recommended for patients with gastrointestinal symptoms whose stool tested negative for parasites. A stool culture with our test will identify intestinal pathogens that may be making you sick, including Salmonella sp., Escherichia coli, Klebsiellella sp., Vibrio cholera, Citrobacter freundii, Proteus vulgaris, Yersinia sp., Campylobacter sp., and Clostridium difficle.

How does the testing process work?

Here's how the test kit works:

1. We ship the test kit to your home.
2. You take the test in your bathroom.
3. You send the samples to our lab.
4. About 2 weeks later we'll have your test results
5. 30 minute phone call to make sure you 100% understand your test results.

How does the lab analyze your samples?

Once the lab receives your stool sample, any pathogens that are collected on the Swab are cultured and will grow on an agar plate, or petri dish. A culture and sensitivity report is generated that lists antibiotics that the pathogen is resistant to and most sensitive to. This report helps doctors determine which antibiotic will be the most effective at killing the pathogen. You should get your results within 2 to 3 weeks after the lab receives your culture.

What Bacteria Are Found With This Test?

• Examples of bacterial found include:
• Salmonella sp.
• Vibrio cholera
• Yersinia sp.
• Escherichia coli
• Citrobacter freundii
• Campylobacter sp.
• Klebsiella sp.
• Proteus vulgaris
• Clostridium difficle
• Shigella sp.

Reference:

1. E. coli (Escherichia coli). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Last reviewed December 1, 2014. Accessed October 26, 2021. https://www.cdc.gov/ecoli/general/index.html.