Your skin is your first line of defense, protecting you from harmful bacteria and viruses. However, this makes it prone to infections that may cause unpleasant symptoms or severe complications. At MD Molecular Diagnostics, the team uses skin & soft tissue panel Dallas to diagnose the infections. This treatment can also help your physician to identify the appropriate antibiotics to prevent antibiotic resistance.
An overview of skin and soft tissue panel
The skin and soft tissue panel is a diagnostic test that examines your blood for skin and soft tissue infections. The Panel can include several tests, such as a PCR test and a Gram stain, to identify the microorganism causing the infection. This technique can detect wound infections, abscesses, and cellulitis. Your physician may order this test if you experience pain, fever, warmth, swelling, and pain. Your results determine your treatment plan, which may include antibiotics to prevent complications and manage the infection.
The essence of skin and soft tissue panels in diagnosis
This Panel can help your doctor to detect the underlying cause of your fever, swelling, and other unpleasant symptoms. This can improve your outcomes and minimize the risk of antibiotic resistance by administering the correct antibiotics. Additionally, skin and soft tissue panels can help health providers to detect potential outbreaks of infectious diseases in a community. They can analyze the panel results and identify the trends and patterns in the infectious agents. This information can help them develop strategies to prevent infection transmission. For instance, healthcare providers can educate the public about the importance of hand hygiene and disinfection.
The process of the skin and soft tissue panel testing
Your provider will extract a tissue sample from your wound or abscess for analysis during your test. They may place the tissue in a culture dish and allow it to grow under regulated conditions. Afterward, the lab technicians may perform several tests on the sample to identify pathogens. The tests may include gram staining, which involves differentiating between different types of bacteria relying on their cell wall culture, and biochemical testing, which involves identifying the specific enzymes the bacteria produce. The team may also perform additional tests to identify the appropriate antibiotics to prescribe. This test is referred to as antibiotic susceptibility, and it involves exposing the bacteria to different types of antibiotics and analyzing their response.
When to consider the test
Anyone experiencing symptoms associated with soft tissue infections can benefit from this diagnostic technique. Your provider may suggest this test if you have underlying health conditions that may increase your risk of infections like cancer and diabetes. Additionally, if you have indwelling devices like catheters or have recently undergone surgery, this test can help identify potential infections before they cause further complications. This test can identify several types of viral, fungal, and bacterial infections. Additionally, it can detect antibiotic resistance patterns which can help your doctor develop an effective treatment to prevent you from overusing antibiotics.
For more information about skin and soft tissue panel tests, call the MD Molecular Diagnostics office or schedule an appointment online.