CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY FINAL EXAM
WITH CORRECT ANSWERS
Rejection cof cinappropriately ccollected cor ctransported cspecimens c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔should cbe cinitiated cby claboratory cpersonnel cbut capproved cby cnursing cor
cphysician cstaff cresponsible cfor cthe ccare cof cthe cpatient.
Anaerobes cgrow cbest cin c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔Five cpercent cto c10% chydrogen c(H2),
c5% cto c10% cCO2, c80% cto c90% cnitrogen c(N2), cand c0% cO2.
To cbe csterilized cin can cautoclave, cinfectious cmedical cwaste cshould cbe: c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔processed cfor c30 cto c60 cminutes cat c132°C cand c15 cpsi cpressure.
The cdefinitive cidentification cof cclinically csignificant cisolates cis: c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔desirable cin cmost ccases; chowever, climited cidentification cmay csometimes cbe
cnecessary cand chelpful.
The cmicrobiology claboratory creceives ca cgenital cculture cfrom ca c28-year-old cfemale.
cThe cspecimen cdirect cGram cstain creveals, cgram-positive ccocci cin cclusters cand
cgram-negative ccocci cin cchains. cThe cmicrobiologist cinoculates ca csheep cblood cagar
cplate, ca cchocolate cagar cplate, ca cmodified cthayer cmartin cplate cand ca cLIM cBroth
c(selective cenrichment cfor cgroup cB cstreptococci). cThe csecond cshift cmicrobiologist
cidentifies cthe cdiscrepancy cand cmust ctake ccorrective caction. cThe cdiscrepancy
cindicates: c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔the cpreliminary cGram cstain cwas cerroneously
creported.
The cagency cthat cpublished cguidelines cknown cas cStandard cPrecautions cto creduce
cthe crisk cof cdisease ctransmission cin claboratories cis c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔CDC.
Primary cplating cmedia cfor cstool cinclude c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔BA, cMac, cHE, cCampy
Class cII cbiological csafety ccabinets c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔All cof cthe cabove care
ccorrect
Certain cprocedures crequire cthe cuse cof ca cbiological csafety ccabinet. cThese cinclude c-
cCORRECT cANS✔✔all cof cthe cabove.
Specimens cfor cmicrobiologic cstudies cshould cbe c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔All cof cthe
cabove care ccorrect.
,Holding cmedia csuch cas cStuart's cmedium cand cAmie's cmedium care cused c-
cCORRECT cANS✔✔to cmaintain cthe cviability cof cmicroorganisms cpresent cin ca
cspecimen.
Which ctype cof cmedia cis cdesigned cto csupport cthe cgrowth cof ca cwide crange cof
cmicroorganisms? c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔Nutritive
(A) cTrue cor c(B) cFalse: cReporting cor cformal cdocumentation cof can caccident cin cthe
clab cmust cbe cdone cFIRST cbefore cthe chealthcare cworker creceives cimmediate
cmedical ccare. c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔False
The cmethod cof cchoice cfor csterilizing citems csuch cas cantibiotic csolutions, cchemicals,
cradioisotopes, cand cvaccines cthat care cheat-sensitive cis: c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔filtration.
To cbe csterilized cin can cautoclave, cmedia cor cinstruments cshould cbe: c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔processed cfor c15 cminutes cat c121°C cand c15 cpsi cpressure.
Which ctype cof cmedia cis cdesigned cto csupport cthe cgrowth cof cone cgroup cof
corganisms, cbut cnot canother, cby ccontaining cantimicrobials, cdyes, cor calcohol? c-
cCORRECT cANS✔✔Selective
The cappropriate cstorage cfor ca ccerebral cspinal cfluid cspecimen cis c____°C. c-
cCORRECT cANS✔✔37
A cprincipal crole cof cthe cclinical cmicrobiologist cincludes: c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔quickly
cand caccurately ccommunicating cinformation cabout cthe cpatient cin cboth cverbal cand
cwritten cformats.
Routine cmicrobiology ccultures cshould cinclude call cof cthe cfollowing cmedia cexcept: c-
cCORRECT cANS✔✔highly cselective cspecialized cmedia csuch cas cLöwenstein-Jensen
cagar.
Selection cof cculture cmedia cfor cspecific cspecimens cincludes ca cvariety cof cmedia cfor
call cof cthe cfollowing creasons cexcept: c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔a cback-up cbroth cis
cincluded cto cprovide cinoculum cfor cadditional ctesting.
The cmicrobiologist creceives ca csputum cspecimen cthat cupon cpreliminary cGram
cstaining creview cof cdirect csmear, ccontains cnumerous csquamous cepithelial ccells cand
can cexcessive camount cof ccontaminating cnormal cflora. cBased con cthe cmicrobiologists
cknowledge, cthe cmicrobiologist crejects cthe cspecimen cand crequests ca cnew csample.
cThe cphysician cinsists cthat cthe cmicrobiologist cculture cthe csample cas creceived. cThe
cmicrobiologist cshould: c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔set-up cthe cculture cas cordered cnoting
cthe clack cof cspecimen cintegrity cthat cmay ccompromise cculture cresults.
,A cdefinitive cidentification cof ca cpathogen ctypically cincludes: c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔a
cconfirmatory cset cof creactions cthat ccorrelates cto cthe cpreliminary ccharacteristics.
The cmacroscopic cexamination cfor creceipt cand creview cof cspecimens cshould cinclude
call cof cthe cfollowing: c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔leakage, cblood cor cmucus cpresent,
cviscosity cfor cfluids, ccolor cand cconsistency.
An cexample cof ca cb-hemolytic cgram-positive corganism cis: c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔Escherichia ccoli.
Which cspecimen cculture, cif cpositive, cshould cbe cimmediately creported cto cthe
cclinician? c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔Stool
Which cspecimen cis cquantitatively cplated cby cusing ca ccalibrated cloop? c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔Urine
Between c5% cand c10% chydrogen c(H2), c5% cto c10% cCO2, c80% cto c90% cnitrogen
c(N2), cand c0% cO2 cproduce can cenvironmental ccondition cthat cbest csuits cwhich ctype
cof corganism? c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔Anaerobes
Biosafety cLevel c2 cagents c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔include cthose cthat care cthe ccommon
cagents cof cinfectious cdisease
Procedures csuch cas cgrinding, cmincing, cvortexing, cand cpreparing csmears c-
cCORRECT cANS✔✔create caerosol cdroplets cand cshould cbe cperformed conly cin can
capproved cbiosafety ccabinet.
The cbest canticoagulant cthat ccan cbe cused cto cprevent cclotting cof cspecimens csuch
cas cblood, cbone cmarrow, cand csynovial cfluid cthat care csubmitted cfor crecovery cof call
ctypes cof cmicroorganisms cis c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔sodium cpolyanethol csulfonate
c(SPS).
Reduced cO2 c(5% cto c10%) cand cincreased cCO2 c(8% cto c10%) cis cthe cenvironmental
ccondition cthat cbest csuits cwhich ctype cof corganism? c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔Microaerophiles
Colonies cof cStreptococcus cpneumoniae cappear ca-hemolytic con cblood cagar cmedia.
cWhich cone cof cthe cfollowing cstatements cexplains cthis cdiscrepancy? c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔No cdiscrepancy cis cpresent. cS. cpneumoniae cshould cbe ca-hemolytic con
cblood cagar.
An cexample cof ca cselective cmedium cfor cgram-positive corganisms cis: c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔olistin cand cnalidixic cacid.
, The cmicrobiologist creceives ca csputum cspecimen cfor cculture cin cthe cmicrobiology
claboratory. cUpon creceipt cthe cmicrobiologist cshould: c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔complete
ca cdirect cGram cstain cand cpreliminary creport.
Increased cconcentrations cof cCO2 c(5% cto c10%) cand capproximately c15% cO2
cproduce can cenvironmental ccondition cthat cbest csuits cwhich ctype cof corganism? c-
cCORRECT cANS✔✔Capnophiles
A ccandle cjar cis cused cto ccultivate cwhich ctype cof cbacteria? c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔Capnophiles
Which corganism cis ccatalase cpositive, ccoagulase cnegative, cpyrrolidonyl carylamidase
c(PYR) cpositive, csusceptible cto cnovobiocin, curease cnegative, cand cb-hemolytic con
csheep cblood cagar? c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔S. chaemolyticus
The cresident chuman cmicrobiota, cstaphylococcus, cwhich cis cmore clikely cto ccause
cinfections cin ccompromised chosts csuch cas cpatients cwith ccancer, cis: c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔S. cepidermidis.
Rejection cof cinappropriately ccollected cor ctransported cspecimens: c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔should cbe cinitiated cby claboratory cpersonnel cbut capproved cby cthe cnurses
cor cphysicians cresponsible cfor cthe ccare cof cthe cpatient.
Clinical csensitivity cin cthe cmicrobiology claboratory crefers cto: c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔positive cresults cfrom cpatients cknown cto chave can cinfection cor cdisease.
Which ccategory cof cmedia ccan cbe cdescribed cas ccontaining cnutrients cthat csupport
cthe cgrowth cof cthe cmost cnonfastidious corganisms cwithout cgiving cany cparticular
corganism ca cgrowth cadvantage? c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔Supportive
Which cmedium ccan cbe cdescribed cas ccontaining ccrystal cviolet cdye cto cinhibit cthe
cgrowth cof cgram-positive cbacteria cand cfungi cand callows cmany ctypes cof cgram-
negative cbacilli cto cgrow? c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔MacConkey cagar
Which cvirulent cand cimportant chuman cpathogen ccan calso cbe crecovered cfrom cthe
cnares, cperineum, cand cother cskin csites cof chealthy cpeople, cespecially cin cthe chospital
csetting? c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔S. caureus
A curine cspecimen cwas ccollected cat c8 ca.m. cThe cnurse clabeled cthe csample cand
cplaced cit cnext cto cthe ctube cstation cto cbe csent cto cthe claboratory cfor ctesting. cThe
cspecimen cwas creceived cin cthe claboratory cfor cculture cat c1 cp.m. con cthe csame cday.
cThe cmicrobiologist cshould: c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔Call cthe cnurse cto cexplain cwhy cthe
cspecimen cwas crejected cand crequest ca cnew csample
Biosafety cLevel c1 cagents: c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔require conly cstandard cgood
claboratory ctechnique.
WITH CORRECT ANSWERS
Rejection cof cinappropriately ccollected cor ctransported cspecimens c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔should cbe cinitiated cby claboratory cpersonnel cbut capproved cby cnursing cor
cphysician cstaff cresponsible cfor cthe ccare cof cthe cpatient.
Anaerobes cgrow cbest cin c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔Five cpercent cto c10% chydrogen c(H2),
c5% cto c10% cCO2, c80% cto c90% cnitrogen c(N2), cand c0% cO2.
To cbe csterilized cin can cautoclave, cinfectious cmedical cwaste cshould cbe: c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔processed cfor c30 cto c60 cminutes cat c132°C cand c15 cpsi cpressure.
The cdefinitive cidentification cof cclinically csignificant cisolates cis: c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔desirable cin cmost ccases; chowever, climited cidentification cmay csometimes cbe
cnecessary cand chelpful.
The cmicrobiology claboratory creceives ca cgenital cculture cfrom ca c28-year-old cfemale.
cThe cspecimen cdirect cGram cstain creveals, cgram-positive ccocci cin cclusters cand
cgram-negative ccocci cin cchains. cThe cmicrobiologist cinoculates ca csheep cblood cagar
cplate, ca cchocolate cagar cplate, ca cmodified cthayer cmartin cplate cand ca cLIM cBroth
c(selective cenrichment cfor cgroup cB cstreptococci). cThe csecond cshift cmicrobiologist
cidentifies cthe cdiscrepancy cand cmust ctake ccorrective caction. cThe cdiscrepancy
cindicates: c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔the cpreliminary cGram cstain cwas cerroneously
creported.
The cagency cthat cpublished cguidelines cknown cas cStandard cPrecautions cto creduce
cthe crisk cof cdisease ctransmission cin claboratories cis c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔CDC.
Primary cplating cmedia cfor cstool cinclude c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔BA, cMac, cHE, cCampy
Class cII cbiological csafety ccabinets c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔All cof cthe cabove care
ccorrect
Certain cprocedures crequire cthe cuse cof ca cbiological csafety ccabinet. cThese cinclude c-
cCORRECT cANS✔✔all cof cthe cabove.
Specimens cfor cmicrobiologic cstudies cshould cbe c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔All cof cthe
cabove care ccorrect.
,Holding cmedia csuch cas cStuart's cmedium cand cAmie's cmedium care cused c-
cCORRECT cANS✔✔to cmaintain cthe cviability cof cmicroorganisms cpresent cin ca
cspecimen.
Which ctype cof cmedia cis cdesigned cto csupport cthe cgrowth cof ca cwide crange cof
cmicroorganisms? c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔Nutritive
(A) cTrue cor c(B) cFalse: cReporting cor cformal cdocumentation cof can caccident cin cthe
clab cmust cbe cdone cFIRST cbefore cthe chealthcare cworker creceives cimmediate
cmedical ccare. c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔False
The cmethod cof cchoice cfor csterilizing citems csuch cas cantibiotic csolutions, cchemicals,
cradioisotopes, cand cvaccines cthat care cheat-sensitive cis: c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔filtration.
To cbe csterilized cin can cautoclave, cmedia cor cinstruments cshould cbe: c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔processed cfor c15 cminutes cat c121°C cand c15 cpsi cpressure.
Which ctype cof cmedia cis cdesigned cto csupport cthe cgrowth cof cone cgroup cof
corganisms, cbut cnot canother, cby ccontaining cantimicrobials, cdyes, cor calcohol? c-
cCORRECT cANS✔✔Selective
The cappropriate cstorage cfor ca ccerebral cspinal cfluid cspecimen cis c____°C. c-
cCORRECT cANS✔✔37
A cprincipal crole cof cthe cclinical cmicrobiologist cincludes: c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔quickly
cand caccurately ccommunicating cinformation cabout cthe cpatient cin cboth cverbal cand
cwritten cformats.
Routine cmicrobiology ccultures cshould cinclude call cof cthe cfollowing cmedia cexcept: c-
cCORRECT cANS✔✔highly cselective cspecialized cmedia csuch cas cLöwenstein-Jensen
cagar.
Selection cof cculture cmedia cfor cspecific cspecimens cincludes ca cvariety cof cmedia cfor
call cof cthe cfollowing creasons cexcept: c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔a cback-up cbroth cis
cincluded cto cprovide cinoculum cfor cadditional ctesting.
The cmicrobiologist creceives ca csputum cspecimen cthat cupon cpreliminary cGram
cstaining creview cof cdirect csmear, ccontains cnumerous csquamous cepithelial ccells cand
can cexcessive camount cof ccontaminating cnormal cflora. cBased con cthe cmicrobiologists
cknowledge, cthe cmicrobiologist crejects cthe cspecimen cand crequests ca cnew csample.
cThe cphysician cinsists cthat cthe cmicrobiologist cculture cthe csample cas creceived. cThe
cmicrobiologist cshould: c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔set-up cthe cculture cas cordered cnoting
cthe clack cof cspecimen cintegrity cthat cmay ccompromise cculture cresults.
,A cdefinitive cidentification cof ca cpathogen ctypically cincludes: c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔a
cconfirmatory cset cof creactions cthat ccorrelates cto cthe cpreliminary ccharacteristics.
The cmacroscopic cexamination cfor creceipt cand creview cof cspecimens cshould cinclude
call cof cthe cfollowing: c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔leakage, cblood cor cmucus cpresent,
cviscosity cfor cfluids, ccolor cand cconsistency.
An cexample cof ca cb-hemolytic cgram-positive corganism cis: c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔Escherichia ccoli.
Which cspecimen cculture, cif cpositive, cshould cbe cimmediately creported cto cthe
cclinician? c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔Stool
Which cspecimen cis cquantitatively cplated cby cusing ca ccalibrated cloop? c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔Urine
Between c5% cand c10% chydrogen c(H2), c5% cto c10% cCO2, c80% cto c90% cnitrogen
c(N2), cand c0% cO2 cproduce can cenvironmental ccondition cthat cbest csuits cwhich ctype
cof corganism? c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔Anaerobes
Biosafety cLevel c2 cagents c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔include cthose cthat care cthe ccommon
cagents cof cinfectious cdisease
Procedures csuch cas cgrinding, cmincing, cvortexing, cand cpreparing csmears c-
cCORRECT cANS✔✔create caerosol cdroplets cand cshould cbe cperformed conly cin can
capproved cbiosafety ccabinet.
The cbest canticoagulant cthat ccan cbe cused cto cprevent cclotting cof cspecimens csuch
cas cblood, cbone cmarrow, cand csynovial cfluid cthat care csubmitted cfor crecovery cof call
ctypes cof cmicroorganisms cis c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔sodium cpolyanethol csulfonate
c(SPS).
Reduced cO2 c(5% cto c10%) cand cincreased cCO2 c(8% cto c10%) cis cthe cenvironmental
ccondition cthat cbest csuits cwhich ctype cof corganism? c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔Microaerophiles
Colonies cof cStreptococcus cpneumoniae cappear ca-hemolytic con cblood cagar cmedia.
cWhich cone cof cthe cfollowing cstatements cexplains cthis cdiscrepancy? c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔No cdiscrepancy cis cpresent. cS. cpneumoniae cshould cbe ca-hemolytic con
cblood cagar.
An cexample cof ca cselective cmedium cfor cgram-positive corganisms cis: c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔olistin cand cnalidixic cacid.
, The cmicrobiologist creceives ca csputum cspecimen cfor cculture cin cthe cmicrobiology
claboratory. cUpon creceipt cthe cmicrobiologist cshould: c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔complete
ca cdirect cGram cstain cand cpreliminary creport.
Increased cconcentrations cof cCO2 c(5% cto c10%) cand capproximately c15% cO2
cproduce can cenvironmental ccondition cthat cbest csuits cwhich ctype cof corganism? c-
cCORRECT cANS✔✔Capnophiles
A ccandle cjar cis cused cto ccultivate cwhich ctype cof cbacteria? c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔Capnophiles
Which corganism cis ccatalase cpositive, ccoagulase cnegative, cpyrrolidonyl carylamidase
c(PYR) cpositive, csusceptible cto cnovobiocin, curease cnegative, cand cb-hemolytic con
csheep cblood cagar? c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔S. chaemolyticus
The cresident chuman cmicrobiota, cstaphylococcus, cwhich cis cmore clikely cto ccause
cinfections cin ccompromised chosts csuch cas cpatients cwith ccancer, cis: c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔S. cepidermidis.
Rejection cof cinappropriately ccollected cor ctransported cspecimens: c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔should cbe cinitiated cby claboratory cpersonnel cbut capproved cby cthe cnurses
cor cphysicians cresponsible cfor cthe ccare cof cthe cpatient.
Clinical csensitivity cin cthe cmicrobiology claboratory crefers cto: c- cCORRECT
cANS✔✔positive cresults cfrom cpatients cknown cto chave can cinfection cor cdisease.
Which ccategory cof cmedia ccan cbe cdescribed cas ccontaining cnutrients cthat csupport
cthe cgrowth cof cthe cmost cnonfastidious corganisms cwithout cgiving cany cparticular
corganism ca cgrowth cadvantage? c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔Supportive
Which cmedium ccan cbe cdescribed cas ccontaining ccrystal cviolet cdye cto cinhibit cthe
cgrowth cof cgram-positive cbacteria cand cfungi cand callows cmany ctypes cof cgram-
negative cbacilli cto cgrow? c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔MacConkey cagar
Which cvirulent cand cimportant chuman cpathogen ccan calso cbe crecovered cfrom cthe
cnares, cperineum, cand cother cskin csites cof chealthy cpeople, cespecially cin cthe chospital
csetting? c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔S. caureus
A curine cspecimen cwas ccollected cat c8 ca.m. cThe cnurse clabeled cthe csample cand
cplaced cit cnext cto cthe ctube cstation cto cbe csent cto cthe claboratory cfor ctesting. cThe
cspecimen cwas creceived cin cthe claboratory cfor cculture cat c1 cp.m. con cthe csame cday.
cThe cmicrobiologist cshould: c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔Call cthe cnurse cto cexplain cwhy cthe
cspecimen cwas crejected cand crequest ca cnew csample
Biosafety cLevel c1 cagents: c- cCORRECT cANS✔✔require conly cstandard cgood
claboratory ctechnique.
