Soils in the trays were moistened to field capacity.
Sampling of larger areas using a moistened swab may have resulted in a greater yield of C. difficile [ 30].
Cultures were collected from seven anatomical sites (nare, oropharynx, axilla, groin, web spaces of dominant hand, web spaces of the foot, and perirectal area) using pre-moistened swabs (Copan, Stuart liquid media culture, Copan Inc., Brescia, Italy) over a 2 month time period (May-June, 2011).
Cultures were obtained by rotating a moistened swab in both nares, perineum area, and secreting lesions and were processed at the Clinical Microbiology Laboratory of the Soroka University Medical Center.
The research team performed culture collection from the nares, oropharynx, axilla, groin, web spaces of dominant hand, web spaces of the foot, and perirectal area using a pre-moistened swab (Copan, Stuart liquid media culture, Copan Inc., Brescia, Italy).
Immediately after inoculation, each test area was sampled using a pre-moistened cotton-tipped swab.
Each test area was sampled with a pre-moistened swab which, prior to plating, was vortexed within 1 ml of neutralising solution (phosphate buffered saline incorporating 3% Tween 80 (w/v), 0.3% lecithin (w/v), 0.1% sodium thiosulphate (w/v)).
If towelettes are not readily available, blot the area with a soft cloth that is moistened with cool to tepid water, taking care to not rub.
In brief, the open end of a sterile plastic cylinder was manually placed on the sampling site and the inside area was scrubbed by using a PBS-moistened swab.
