In
medicine, sampling is gathering of
matter from the body to aid in the process of a
medical diagnosis and/or evaluation of an
indication for treatment, further
medical tests or other procedures. In this sense, the sample is the gathered matter, and the sampling tool or sampler is the person or material to collect the sample.
Obtaining excretions or materials that leave the body anyway, such as
urine,
stool,
sputum, or
vomitus, by direct collection as they exit. A sample of
saliva can also be collected from the mouth.
Excision (cutting out), a surgical method for the removal of solid or soft tissue samples.
Scraping or swiping. In a
Pap test, cells are scraped off a
uterine cervix with a special
spatula and brush or a special broom device that is inserted through a vagina without having to puncture any tissue.
Epithelial cells for
DNA testing can be obtained by swiping the inside of a cheek in a mouth with a swab.
Biopsy or cytopathology
In terms of sampling technique, a
biopsy generally refers to a preparation where the normal tissue structure is preserved, availing for examination of both individual cells and their organization for the study of
histology, while a sample for
cytopathology is prepared primarily for the examination of individual cells, not necessarily preserving the tissue structure. Examples of biopsy procedures are
bone marrow biopsy,
brain biopsy,
skin biopsy and
liver biopsy.
By sampled matter
Different types of matter that are sampled can be categorized by solidness versus fluidity, such as:
Venous blood sampling, also called phlebotomy. It is generally done by
venipuncture (which can also be used for
intravenous therapy). Other than routine diabetic monitoring for glucose, the majority of
blood tests are done on samples of venous blood taken by a
health professional, including
phlebotomists who are specifically trained in venipuncture. Such samples are commonly collected in capped
test tubes, often with a small amount of some sort of preservative.
Sampling of
sputum from the
lungs for
sputum culture. It can be performed by special techniques of coughing, or by a protected specimen brush (PSB),[1] which is a brush that can be retracted into a plastic tube to prevent contamination of bacteria in the throat while inserting and removing the instrument.
References
^Chastre, J.; Viau, F.; Brun, P.; Pierre, J.; Dauge, M. C.; Bouchama, A.; Akesbi, A.; Gibert, C. (1984). "Prospective evaluation of the protected specimen brush for the diagnosis of pulmonary infections in ventilated patients". The American Review of Respiratory Disease. 130 (5): 924–929.
doi:
10.1164/arrd.1984.130.5.924 (inactive 31 January 2024).
PMID6497170.{{
cite journal}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of January 2024 (
link)