Parasitology Lab

• Protective procedures


  • Always wear personal protective equipment (hairnet, goggles, mask, laboratory gown, gloves) during laboratory activities
  • Always use the appropriate pipetting devices. Mouth pipetting is not allowed
  • Tie long hair back securely
  • Maintain short nails
• Emergency procedures

  Locate and use emergency equipment (wash/shower stations, first aid kits, fire extinguishers, telephone, and emergency numbers) properly
• Blood samples

  All blood samples are potentially infectious
• Stabbing or cutting injuries


  Dispose of used needles or lancets in the sharp's container. Never reuse lancets
• Mucous membrane/skin contamination


  Cover cuts with impervious dressings. Avoid spilling blood or any blood product on broken skin or mucous membranes
• Stool samples


  Stool samples should either be incinerated or soaked in disinfectant solution and then buried in disposable specimen containers after each experiment
• Disinfect the laboratory working surfaces


  Before and after the conduct of laboratory output
• Identify and dispose of different types of waste properly
• Return all materials and reagents


  To their proper storage area
• Handle equipment properly
• Keep the laboratory working surfaces

  Free of clutter
• Protective Procedures


  • Always wear personal protective equipment (hairnet, goggles, mask, laboratory gown, gloves) during laboratory activities
  • Always use the appropriate pipetting devices. Mouth pipetting is not allowed
  • Tie long hair back securely
  • Maintain short nails
• Locate and use emergency equipment

  1. Wash/shower stations, first aid kits, fire extinguishers, telephone, and emergency numbers
• Blood samples

  All blood samples are potentially infectious
• Dispose of used needles or lancets

  In the sharp's container. Never reuse lancets
• Cover cuts with impervious dressings

  Avoid spilling blood or any blood product on broken skin or mucous membranes
• Stool samples


  Should either be incinerated or soaked in disinfectant solution and then buried in disposable specimen containers after each experiment
• Laboratory rules


  1. Do not eat or drink inside the laboratory

  2. Avoid touching the face while in the laboratory

  3. Never apply cosmetics, contact lenses, or place objects (fingers, pencils) in the mouth or any mucosal surfaces

  4. Adhere to precautions stated in every laboratory output
• Urine samples


  Avoid skin contact. Discarded via the sewage system.
• Microscope slides

  1. Places slides used in direct fecal smear procedures or any parasitological procedures in a pot containing 1% hypochlorite solution

  2. Place in sharp container
• Cleaning work area (laboratory bench)

  1. Use a phenolic disinfectant such as 5% Lysol or 5% phenol or a quaternary compound such as cetylpyridium

  2. Before and after each laboratory period
• This standard procedure decreases the chance for accidental infection and prevents the contamination of cultures
• Handling infectious material spill

  1. Cover it immediately with a paper towel

  2. Dampen with 5% Lysol or 5% phenol

  3. Notify the instructor present immediately
• Since medical history and examination cannot reliably identify all patients infected with HIV or other blood/fluid-borne pathogens, universal precautions should be consistently applied for all biological samples
• Universal precautions

  1. Health-care workers should routinely use barrier protection to prevent skin and mucous membrane exposure when contact with patients'/biological samples is anticipated

  2. Masks, protective goggles, or face shields should be worn during procedures that are likely to generate aerosols to prevent exposure of mucous membranes of the mouth, nose, and eyes

  3. Gowns or aprons should be worn during procedures that are likely to generate splashes of biological fluids
• Handling contaminated materials


  The hands and other skin surfaces should be washed immediately and thoroughly if contaminated with biological samples and chemicals
• Precautions health-care workers should take to prevent injuries

  1. Prevent injuries caused by needles, scalpels, and other sharp instruments or devices during procedures

  2. Prevent injuries when cleaning used instruments

  3. Prevent injuries during disposal of used needles

  4. Prevent injuries when handling sharp instruments after procedures
• Do not recap needles using both hands; practice fishing out its cap and securing it by pressing on the work surface
• Disposable items

  • Syringes
  • Needles
  • Scalpel blades
  • Other sharp
• Puncture-resistant container


  Container for disposal of items
• Saliva has not been implicated in the transmission of HIV
• Mouth-to-mouth resuscitation


  • Minimize the need by placing mouthpieces, resuscitation bags, or other ventilation devices in areas where the need for resuscitation is predictable
• Exudative lesions


  Weeping dermatitis
• Procedure to clean up spills of biological fluids

  1. Wear personal protective equipment and any other necessary barriers properly

  2. Wipe up excess material with disposable towels and place the towels in a container for sterilization properly and securely

  3. Disinfect the area with either a commercial EPA-approved germicide or household bleach (sodium hypochlorite)

  4. When dealing with large spills or those containing sharp objects such as broken glass, cover the spill first with disposable towels, then saturate the towel with commercial germicide or a 1:10 bleach solution and allow it to stand for at least 10 minutes
• Dilution of household bleach 1 : 100 (smooth surfaces) to 1 : 10 (porous or dirty surfaces)

  1. Dilution of household bleach100 (smooth surfaces) to 1:10 (porous or dirty surfaces) (porous or dirty surfaces)
• The dilution of household bleach should be no more than 24 hours old
• Standard Laboratory Precautions


  1. Biological fluids should always be considered infectious

  2. All biological fluids should be placed in a well-constructed container with a secure lid to prevent leaks during transport

  3. Observe the necessary precautions when collecting specimens to avoid contaminating the outside of the container and the laboratory when accompanying the specimen

  4. All persons processing biological fluids must wear gloves

  5. Masks and protective eyewear should be worn if mucous membrane contact with biological fluids is anticipated

  6. Gloves should be changed and the hands must be washed after completion of specimen processing
• Biological safety cabinet


  • Not necessary for routine procedures like histologic, pathologic, or microbiologic culturing
  • Should be used for procedures with high potential for generating droplets, such as blending, sonicating, and vigorous mixing
• Scientific equipment contaminated with biological fluids should be decontaminated and cleaned before being repaired or transported
• Mechanical pipetting devices


  Should be used for manipulating all fluids in the laboratory