Collecting a Throat Culture

A throat culture is taken using a cotton swab

Unlike giving a blood sample, there is little preparation required for a throat culture. The patient is asked to open his or her mouth and then the back of the throat is scrubbed with a cotton swab to obtain an adequate sample from the throat.

This article was last reviewed on October 22, 2008. | This article was last modified on November 14, 2009.

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