ASCP M case studies
ASCP M · Put your knowledge to work in context.
The Technologist in Microbiology credential, commonly written M(ASCP), is a professional certification for laboratory professionals who work in clinical microbiology. ASCP lists BOC initial certification preparation among its education offerings for laboratory professionals, and the M examination sits within that certification pathway. The ASCP M case studies are 6 cases and about 3,324 words.
1Coagulase-negative staphylococci in a dialysis catheter: contaminant or pathogen?
D, a 58-year-old on maintenance hemodialysis through a tunneled cuffed catheter, develops chills mid-session and a temperature of 38.9 °C. Two blood culture sets are drawn 30 minutes apart, one from the catheter and one from a peripheral vein.
529 words, about 3 min2Reactive antigen/antibody screen with a negative antibody differentiation assay
A 24-year-old man presents with 4 days of fever to 38.6 °C, sore throat, generalized lymphadenopathy, and a faint maculopapular rash on the trunk. He reports condomless anal sex with a new partner 12 days before symptom onset and has never been tested for HIV.
475 words, about 2 min3A yeast the automated system calls Candida haemulonii
A 70-year-old man has been in a long-term acute care hospital for 6 weeks, receiving broad-spectrum antibiotics through a central line after a prolonged surgical stay. He develops fever and hypotension; two blood culture sets grow a yeast at 30 hours.
477 words, about 2 min4Intraerythrocytic rings in a patient who has not traveled
A 66-year-old man from coastal Rhode Island presents in July with 5 days of fever to 39.4 °C, profound fatigue, and dark urine. He has not traveled outside New England in 20 years and has an intact spleen.
504 words, about 3 min5Reactive treponemal test with a nonreactive RPR in a pregnant patient
A 29-year-old woman at 14 weeks' gestation has routine prenatal serology. The RPR is nonreactive.
551 words, about 3 min6Blood culture contamination rate triples in one quarter
A 320-bed community hospital draws about 4,000 blood culture sets per year. The laboratory's quarterly quality report shows the contamination rate - coagulase-negative staphylococci, viridans-group streptococci, diphtheroids, or Bacillus species in one of two or more sets, with no repeat positive - rising from 1.6% to 4.8% over three months.
788 words, about 4 min