Abdul Hannan, Saadia Chaudhary, Sidrah Saleem, Atika Qayyum, Muhammad Usman Arshad.
Rapid isolation of mycobacteria — need of the hour in our settings.
J Ayub Med Coll Abottabad Jan ;20(4):67-9.

Background: To compare Bactec MGIT 960 with LJ media in terms of time taken for the initial isolation of mycobacteria. Methods: A total of 100 AFB (acid fast bacillus) positive sputum samples were processed and inoculated in both the Lowenstein Jensen (LJ) media and mycobacterium growth indicator tube (MGIT) tubes. Results: Of the 100 samples, positive growth was obtained from all the samples on both the MGIT and LJ media. In MGIT 53% samples grew in 4 days, 30% in 5 days and 17% in 6 days (Mean=4.6 days) while on LJ media, 44% grew in 30 days, 20% in 35 days and 36% in 44 days (Mean=37 days). Significant difference was observed between two systems with a p-value of less than 0.05. Conclusion: Bactec MGIT 960 is a much faster and efficient system for the initial isolation of mycobacteria.

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