Body Fluid Culture / Sensitivity Test in Kathmandu

About this test

When fluid collects abnormally inside one of the body's normally sterile spaces — the chest cavity (pleural fluid), the abdomen (ascitic or peritoneal fluid), a joint (synovial fluid) or the sac around the heart (pericardial fluid) — this test sets out to discover whether infection is the cause. A sample drawn during a sterile tap is placed onto culture media and watched for any bacteria or fungi that grow over the following days. If an organism is isolated, the laboratory then performs sensitivity testing, exposing it to a panel of antibiotics so your doctor learns not just what is causing the infection but precisely which drug will defeat it. The culture is the part that takes time, which is why results are reported over about three days. Doctors order it when a patient has fever with abdominal swelling, breathlessness with fluid on a chest X-ray, or a hot, painful, swollen joint, and they interpret it alongside the fluid's cell count, protein, glucose and Gram stain. In Nepal it carries particular weight because tuberculosis frequently presents this way — as a tuberculous pleural effusion or TB peritonitis — so a fluid that grows nothing on ordinary culture often prompts dedicated TB testing. A confirmed organism with its sensitivity pattern lets your clinician switch from broad guesswork antibiotics to a targeted, effective treatment, and guides whether the fluid needs to be drained.

Sample type

Sterile body fluid (pleural, peritoneal/ascitic, synovial, pericardial or other aspirate)

Preparation

No fasting needed. This sample is collected by a doctor through a sterile aspiration procedure (such as pleural tap, ascitic tap or joint aspiration), so no preparation is required on your part. Tell us if you have already started antibiotics, as this can affect what grows.

Turnaround time

Reports for Body Fluid Culture / Sensitivity are typically ready within: 72 Hours. Reports can be collected at the clinic during opening hours or shared via WhatsApp once they are ready.

Also known as

Other microbiology tests we run

These are routinely ordered alongside Body Fluid Culture / Sensitivity or as part of the same diagnostic workup.

How to book

WhatsApp is the fastest way — message us with the test name and your preferred time, and we'll confirm a slot the same day. You can also walk into the clinic at Rumba Chowk, Sanobharang any day between 7AM and 8PM, or fill in our online booking form.