Technical evaluation of the Beckman Coulter OV-Monitor (CA 125 antigen) immunoassay.

Background: The CA 125 antigen is a large (200-1000 kDa) glycoprotein, present within normal and benign ovarian tissue. We evaluated the analytical performance of the newly available Beckman Coulter OV-Monitor (CA 125 antigen) immunoassay on the Beckman Coulter UniCel DxI 800 analyzer.

Methods: The evaluation was performed according to NCCLS recommendations.

Comparison of three commercial assays for the measurement of 17alpha-hydroxyprogesterone (17alpha-OHPR): limitations of the quality control system.

The measurement of 17alpha-hydroxyprogesterone (17alpha-OHPR) is of value for the diagnosis and management of congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) due to 21-hydroxylase deficiency. In the central laboratory from 2000 to 2002, we observed, using the assay from the manufacturer DSL, an elevation of the moving average of 17alpha-OHPR concentrations and a number of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) stimulation tests despite the lack of any changes to the internal and external quality control, of which the criteria were continuously fulfilled. We studied a population of n=49 patients for the measurement of 17alpha-OHPR, with and without extraction, to evaluate the quality of different commercially available radioimmunoassays.