Why is saline used for swabs?

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Saline is commonly used for swabs in microbiology and clinical applications because it
provides an isotonic environment that preserves cell integrity

๐Œ๐—ฎ๐—ถ๐—ป๐˜๐—ฎ๐—ถ๐—ป๐˜€ ๐— ๐—ผ๐—ถ๐˜€๐˜๐˜‚๐—ฟ๐—ฒ
Saline keeps the swab moist, preventing the sample from drying out, which helps in
recovering microorganisms or cells during testing.

๐๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐˜€๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ๐˜€ ๐—ฉ๐—ถ๐—ฎ๐—ฏ๐—ถ๐—น๐—ถ๐˜๐˜†
It doesn’t kill or alter the microorganisms, ensuring an accurate sample for culturing or
analysis.

๐‚๐—ผ๐—บ๐—ฝ๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ถ๐—ฏ๐—ถ๐—น๐—ถ๐˜๐˜†
Being isotonic (same salt concentration as cells or tissues), saline prevents osmotic stress that
could damage the microorganisms or cells being collected.

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