sputum

[spu´tum]

mucous secretion from the lungs, bronchi, and trachea that is ejected through the mouth, in contrast to saliva, which is the secretion of the salivary glands. Called also expectoration.

induced sputum a sputum specimen produced for diagnostic tests by aerosol administration of a hypertonic saline solution.

sputum specimen a sample of mucous secretion from the bronchi and lungs. The specimen may be examined microscopically for the presence of malignant cells (cytologic examination) or tested to identify pathogenic bacteria (bacteriologic examination). It is essential that the specimen obtained be mucus from the lungs and bronchi and not saliva. For those unable to produce sputum for examination, an aerosol may be used to increase the flow of secretions and stimulate coughing. The optimum time for collection of a sputum specimen is in the morning before eating or drinking anything. At this time secretions accumulated in the bronchi through the night are more readily available, and, should the coughing produce gagging, the patient is less likely to vomit if the stomach is empty. Specimens collected for bacteriologic culture must be placed in a sterile container and handled with care to avoid contamination from sources other than the sputum.

induced sputum

Infectious disease Sputum obtained by having the Pt inhale a saline–salt water mist, causing the Pt to cough deeply

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References in periodicals archive

Expression of macrophage surface markers in induced sputum of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Mycoplasma pneumonia infection and asthma: A clinical study

In the present study, 3% hypertonic saline induced sputum in 97.5% of cases as compared to 50% of cases with the normal saline group (Table 2).

A comparative study of sputum induction in suspected pulmonary tuberculosis

Another study on inflammatory markers in 20 GER patients with cough or mild asthma found no elevation in fibrinogen levels in induced sputum, and an elevation in ECP was more associated with asthma than with GER.

Biomarkers for gastroesophageal reflux in respiratory diseases

Induced sputum for diagnosing Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia in HIV patients: new data, new issues.

HIV-associated opportunistic fungal infections: a guide to using the clinical microbiology laboratory

All induced sputum samples and bronchoscopic specimens were analysed in the pathology department in the usual way.

Lung cancer in elderly patients: the role of induced sputum production to obtain a cytological diagnosis

First, despite the small number of volunteers included in the control group, we have to consider the difficulty of recruiting healthy people with the same age of patients with lung cancer for collecting induced sputum samples.

Detection of sputum cofilin-1 as indicator of malignancy

Asthma is a highly prevalent chronic inflammatory lung disease characterized by airway hyperresponsiveness to allergens, reversible airflow obstruction, airway edema, and increased mucus secretion.[sup][42] Currently, asthma can be divided into four distinct phenotypes termed eosinophilic, neutrophilic, mixed granulocytic, and pauci-granulocytic phenotypes by investigating granulocyte infiltration in induced sputum.[sup][43] Although the majority of patients with eosinophilic asthma are sensitive to corticosteroids, there is recognition that some asthmatics, particularly those who have severe disease and are resistant to corticosteroids, have elevated neutrophil counts in their airways.

Role of Neutrophil Extracellular Traps in Asthma and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Additionally, a study examining induced sputum samples from 44 asthmatic smokers demonstrated that there was greater bacterial diversity in smokers with asthma compared with nonsmoking healthy controls, and that smoking cessation did not lead to a change in the bacterial communities [42].

The Role of Lower Airway Dysbiosis in Asthma: Dysbiosis and Asthma

also observed that COPD patients had higher IL-6, IL-8, TNF-[alpha], and MMP-9 in their induced sputum [99].

Advanced Role of Neutrophils in Common Respiratory Diseases

To assess pneumonia aetiology, a nested casecontrol study was done and respiratory specimens (nasopharyngeal swabs and induced sputum) were tested using a multiplex polymerase chain reaction to identify up to 33 potential respiratory organisms.

Childhood pneumonia: the Drakenstein Child Health Study

Because the clinical presentation, blood tests, or chest radio-graphs are not pathognomonic for PCP and the organism cannot be cultivated routinely, histopathologic demonstration of organisms in tissue, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid or induced sputum samples.

A study on aetiological agents of LRTI with special emphasis on drug sensitivity pattern of isolated bacteria and incidence of pneumocystis carinii pneumonia