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If testing for bacteria (gram-negative) in a urine culture, are negative or positive cultures needed?

I could not find anything that says controls are needed unless results seem to be contaminated. I thought since controls are used in Gram stains, they would be used in cultures as well. Thanks!

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  • $\begingroup$ No, controls aren't needed for a diagnostic test of that kind, since the only concern is about that urine specimen. The result will be either positive or negative; if positive, the urine will be plated and the bacteria will be tested for antibiotic sensitivity. The same is true of blood tests, MRIs, Xrays (although in some pediatric cases, the unaffected side acts as a comparison), etc. $\endgroup$ – anongoodnurse Nov 5 '19 at 23:40
  • $\begingroup$ that makes sense, thank you so much! $\endgroup$ – user16949 Nov 5 '19 at 23:58

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