Skin and Wound Cultures

Wound and Skin Cultures

Why It Is Done

A skin or wound culture is done to:

• Find the cause of an infection in a sore, burn, surgical wound, or injury. An injury includes animal bites, human bites, marine stings or scrapes, cuts, and puncture wounds that are more likely to get infected.
• Make decisions about the best treatment for an infection. This is called sensitivity testing.

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Author:	Sydney Youngerman-Cole, RN, BSN, RNC	Last Updated: August 31, 2006
Medical Review:	William M. Green, MD - Emergency Medicine Adam Husney, MD - Family Medicine W. David Colby IV, MSc, MD, FRCPC - Infectious Disease
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