Diagnosis of Enterobius vermicularis (threadworm) infection.
Moistened early morning perianal swab (placed in specimen pot)
Plain Sterile Universal
For electronic requesting using EPIC (RDUH ONLY):
Search for: ‘Threadworm Investigation‘ or test code ‘LAB248‘
We request you send a moistened (in saline) early morning peri-anal cotton swab placed in a specimen pot (rather than the transport media), and we perform microscopy on this.
Please send three swabs on consecutive days – This method has 90% sensitivity of detecting the eggs if done on 3 consecutive days.
Please Note: We DO NOT accept Sellotape slides.
Processed locally in Microbiology at RDUH
24-48 hours
Contact laboratory
RDUH Clinical Guidance – Recurrent Threadworm Infection (Enterobiasis)
Threadworm | Health topics A to Z | CKS | NICE
Threadworms: Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment – Patient.info
(Key words: threadworms, pinworm)
Specimen Labelling Procedure
9018
