A sterile swab would be used for a ____.

A sterile swab would be used for a ____.

• A. Blood culture
• B. Wound culture
• C. Urine culture
• D. Sputum culture

Answer: (B)

Collecting a specimen from a wound relies on sterile technique to minimize contamination by skin flora, so a sterile swab is used to sample the wound exudate directly and accurately. This approach helps ensure that the organisms identified come from the wound itself rather than from the surrounding skin. Blood cultures are obtained by venipuncture into sterile bottles designed to support microbial growth in the blood, not by swabbing. Urine cultures require a clean, midstream or catheterized sample collected in a sterile container to avoid urethral contamination. Sputum cultures are best obtained from a deep-cough specimen or through induced collection in a sterile container, rather than a surface swab, to ensure a representative sample of lower respiratory tract secretions. Thus, a sterile swab is most appropriate for sampling a wound.

Collecting a specimen from a wound relies on sterile technique to minimize contamination by skin flora, so a sterile swab is used to sample the wound exudate directly and accurately. This approach helps ensure that the organisms identified come from the wound itself rather than from the surrounding skin.

Blood cultures are obtained by venipuncture into sterile bottles designed to support microbial growth in the blood, not by swabbing. Urine cultures require a clean, midstream or catheterized sample collected in a sterile container to avoid urethral contamination. Sputum cultures are best obtained from a deep-cough specimen or through induced collection in a sterile container, rather than a surface swab, to ensure a representative sample of lower respiratory tract secretions.

Thus, a sterile swab is most appropriate for sampling a wound.