Effects of High Concentrations of Sucrose in Blood Culture Media with Special Reference to the Cultivation of Salmonella typhi

Osmotically stabilized media have been reported to increase the recovery rate of various bacteria from blood. This study was made to determine the effect of high concentrations of sucrose on the cultivation of S. typhi from blood. Sucrose in 15% or 30% concentration in the blood culture media retarded the growth. The mean incubation time for the appearance of growth was significantly longer in the media with sucrose. In those blood specimens which rendered growth of S. typhi in both media with and without sucrose, the incubation times were compared; and it was found that the majority of the specimens showed faster growth in the media without sucrose. Experimental cultures showed that the higher the sucrose concentration the lighter and slower were the growths of S. typhi. These tendencies were also observed in the growth of E. coli, P. aeruginosa, S. aureus, beta-hemolytic Streptococcus, alpha-hemolytic Streptococcus and S. pneumoniae.