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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Journal of Gastrointestinal Infections 2023; 13(01): 052-055
DOI: 10.1055/s-0043-1769464
Patient Education

Patient Education: Stool Examination for Gastrointestinal Infections

Menal Gupta 
1   Department of Microbiology, Dayanand Medical College and Hospital, Ludhiana, Punjab, India
,
Veenu Gupta
1   Department of Microbiology, Dayanand Medical College and Hospital, Ludhiana, Punjab, India
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What Is Stool and How Is It Relevant for Diagnosis of Gastrointestinal Infections?

Stool or feces is not only a waste material, but also an important specimen that can be examined to identify any harmful bacteria, parasites, or viruses causing gastrointestinal (GI) infections. Visual examination, microscopy, microbial analysis, and molecular tests can be performed on stool samples to detect the cause. Stool tests provide useful information and evidence for the diagnosis of GI infections. When interpreted appropriately, they can prevent unnecessary investigations, and aid in early institution of targeted therapy.[1]

Ethical Statement

Not applicable.


Authors' Contribution

All authors contributed equally to the article.


Data Availability Statement

There is no data associated with this work.




Publication History

Received: 10 April 2023

Accepted: 14 April 2023

Article published online:
22 September 2023

© 2023. Gastroinstestinal Infection Society of India. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

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