Fecal Flotation

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=90 BGCOLOR="#CCFF99" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="04078671esnimw.png"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#CCFF99" FACE="Arial" ><B>AVIANITARIAN Reference Guide </B></FONT><B>     |     </B><A HREF="index_avianitarian.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="AVIANITARIAN Reference Guide "><B>home</B></A></div> <div> <A HREF="microscope.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Microscope for Aviculture Microbilo">The Microscope  for Aviculture Microbilogy</A>   |   <A HREF="id103.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Microscope Questions">Microscope Questions</A>   |   <A HREF="id111.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="History of Gram Stain">History of Gram Stain</A>   |   <A HREF="id112.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Gram Staining">Gram Staining</A>   |   <B>Fecal Flotation</B>   |   <A HREF="id185.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Flotation continue">Flotation continue</A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=200 BGCOLOR="#336699" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="041c83b3.png"> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" height=390 width="100%" BGCOLOR="#CCFF99" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <I>Fecal Flotation</I></div> <bR> <div> The little container has a spacious fecal well, which holds a larger sample </div> <div> making it less likely to miss ova. The larger paddle makes mixing easier </div> <div> too. Fecal flotation methods are based on the specific gravity of the parasitic </div> <div> material and fecal debris. Specific gravity refers to the weight of an </div> <div> object as compared with the weight of an equal volume of water. The specific </div> <div> gravity of most parasite eggs is 1,100 and 1,200 g/ml while the specific </div> <div> gravity of water is 1,000.</div> <bR> <div> To allow for flotation of parasite eggs, oocysits and other life cycle </div> <div> stages the flotation solution must have a higher specific gravity than that </div> <div> of the parasitic material. Several salt and sugar solutions work well for </div> <div> flotation. Most have a specific gravity of 1,200 to 1,250 and in this range </div> <div> the heavy fecal debris sinks to the bottom of the container while parasitic </div> <div> material rises to the top of the solution. </div> <bR> <div> Sodium nitrate solution is the most common fecal flotation solution. It is </div> <div> very efficient for floating parasite eggs, oocysts and larvae. NOTE sodium </div> <div> nitrate also forms crystals and distorts eggs if allowed to sit longer than 20 </div> <div> minutes. </div> <bR> <div> Another solution commonly used for flotation is sugar solution. Sugar </div> <div> solution is inexpensive and does not crystallize or distort eggs. Sugar </div> <div> solution can be made anywhere and has a long shelf life though sticky to </div> <div> work with. </div> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>