Association of glucocorticoid and type 1 corticotropin-releasing hormone receptors gene variants and risk for depression during pregnancy and post-partum.

Women with postnatal depression (PND) appear to have abnormal hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis responses to stress, which might involve a genetic variability component. We investigated association of genetic variants in the glucocorticoid receptor (GR, NR3C1) and corticotropin releasing hormone receptor 1 (CRHR1) genes with increased risk for PND. Two hundred pregnant women were recruited prospectively and PND risk was assessed by the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) during pregnancy and again 2-8 weeks post-natally (CW-GAPND study).

Multi-centre observational study of spurious hyperkalaemia due to EDTA contamination.

Background: A multi-centre observational study investigating the prevalence of spurious hyperkalaemia due to potassium ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (kEDTA) contamination.

Methods: Serum EDTA was measured in anonymised serum samples with a serum potassium > 6.0 mmol/L collected over a one month period in five different hospital laboratories.