Remel 10% Potassium Hydroxide is a reagent recommended for use in qualitative procedures to detect fungal elements in clinical specimens by microscopic examination. The Laboratory Handbook of Medical Mycology recommends the use of 10% KOH for direct detection of fungal elements in clinical specimens.

The affected skin or nail is gently scraped with a small scalpel or the edge of a glass slide. The scrapings from the skin are placed on a microscope slide and a few drops of a potassium hydroxide (KOH) solution are added. The slide is heated for a short time and then examined under the microscope.

A KOH examination is a straightforward, simple procedure that your doctor might order to determine whether you have a fungal infection on your skin. It’s a low-risk procedure, though you may experience some light bleeding in the area where your skin was scraped for the cell sample.

A whiff test, or KOH test, may be done on the vaginal sample during the wet mount test. A few drops of potassium hydroxide (KOH) are mixed with the sample. The KOH kills bacteria and leaves only yeast behind, revealing if you have a yeast infection.

Principle. Potassium hydroxide (KOH) can be used on clinical specimens to clear cellular material and for better visualization of fungal elements. Different fungal elements like hyphae, pseudohyphae, yeast cells, spores, spherules, and sclerotic bodies can be seen clearly in a KOH wet mount.

Potassium hydroxide is used in food to adjust pH, as a stabilizer, and as a thickening agent. This ingredient has been considered as generally safe as a direct human food ingredient by the FDA, based upon the observance of several good manufacturing practice conditions of use.

Potassium hydroxide in the flask absorbs carbon dioxide; thus, due to the absence of CO2, the leaf fails to produce starch which proves that carbon dioxide is necessary for photosynthesis.

Potassium hydroxide (KOH) solution, being alkaline, has the ability to dissolve keratin that is scraped from the outer layer of skin, which allows the microscopic identification of organisms such as dermatophytes or scabies, helping to establish the correct diagnosis and facilitating effective treatment.

Dermatophytes or yeast seen on a KOH test indicate the person has a fungal infection. Follow-up tests are usually unnecessary. The skin may be sore after the test because of the tissue being scraped off the top of the surface of the skin.

What Is Potassium Hydroxide Mount? Potassium hydroxide (KOH) mount of clinical specimen is a common procedure in he dermatology for rapid detection of fungal elements in skin, hair, and nails. KOH is a cheap and readily available alkali.

Magic Formulas for Aqueous Solutions (Basic)

Potassium hydroxide solution has a wide range of applications in a variety of industries, from food, consumer care and pharmaceuticals to agriculture and glass manufacturing. It is also used as an electrolyte in the production of alkaline batteries and to manufacture biodiesel as well as deicers for airport runways.

KOH – Potassium Hydroxide , is extensively used in the direct wet-mount preparation for different specimens for examples fungal elements and fungi, hair stuffs, skin scales, and nail scraping or other clinical samples with a small drops of 10% Potassium Hydroxide – KOH on a glass slide.

It is very useful for the presumptive diagnosis of type fungal infections. The recommendation of KOH wet mount preparation is very useful in the following suspected clinical conditions as shown in this table. Potassium hydroxide (KOH) reagent is highly corrosive therefore handle it with great care.

Transfer the specimen (small pieces) to the drop of KOH, and cover with glass. Place the slide in a petri dish, or another container with a lid, together with a damp piece of filter paper or cotton wool to prevent the preparation from drying out.

Potassium hydroxide (KOH) preparation is used for the rapid detection of fungal elements in clinical specimen, as it clears the specimen making fungal elements more visible during direct microscopic examination.