The person receiving the<unk>  is asked to tilt his or her head back and open his or her mouth. The health professional will press the tongue down with a tongue depressor and examine the mouth and<unk> . A clean swab will be rubbed over the back of the<unk> , around the tonsils, and over any red areas or sores to collect a sample. The sample may also be collected using a<unk>  washout. For this test, the patient will gargle a small amount of salt water and then spit the fluid into a clean cup. This method gives a larger sample than a<unk>  swab and may make the culture more reliable. A culture for Streptococcus pyogenes can take 18–24 hours when grown at 37 degrees Celsius (body temperature).
Throat culture
Nasopharyngeal swab
Sputum culture
Bronchoalveolar lavage
Saliva testing
Rapid strep test
Bronchial brushing
Viral culture