Synonyms

Respiratory screen

Test Includes

Antibody tests for a range of organisms which cause respiratory infections  The range of tests performed will depend on the clinical information received

Request Form 

Combined Pathology Blood form (Yellow/Black or Blue for GP's) or
Microbiology form (Green)

Availability

On request during normal working hours

Specific Criteria

Please give detailed clinical information including date of onset/contact with the suspected infection

Turnaround Time

7 - 10 days 

Specimen

Serum

Volume

7 ml

Container

Yellow top (SST) tube

Collection

Samples should be transported to laboratory immediately

Lab. Handling

Aliquot and store at 4ºC; send to the Reference Laboratory as soon as possible

Causes for Rejection

Unlabelled sample
Insufficient clinical information given

Reference Range

Significant antibody titres will be greater than 16 or 32, depending on the infective agent

If sufficient clinical information is received, interpretative comments may be given

A second sample taken 7-10 days after the onset of infection may be necessary to give an accurate interpretation of any results obtained