Background: Preanalytical variables, such as sample collection, handling, transport, and storage, may affect patient results. The number of errors in the preanalytical phase may decrease by following standardized procedures.
Methods: A retrospective analysis (2001-2005) of results obtained through the Spanish Society of Clinical Chemistry and Molecular Pathology Quality Assessment Program for the Preanalytical Phase has been carried out to summarize data regarding the main factors affecting the preanalytical phase quality. In such a program, participants are asked to register rejections and causes for rejection of routine or stat samples usually and locally collected at their laboratories.
Results: Results discussed refer to 105 laboratories. Of the 4,715,132 tubes expected to be received during the data collection period among participating laboratories and according to determinations included by clinicians in the request form, 32,977 (0.699%) offered a cause for rejection. Whole blood-EDTA samples and serum samples accounted for 75.6% of all samples collected among laboratories, although they only corresponded to 55.8% of all registered rejections. In total, 81% of rejections arose as a result of the following reasons: "specimen not received" (37.5%), "hemolysis" (29.3%), and "clotted sample" (14.4%). Moreover, plasma-citrate-erythrocyte sedimentation rate exhibited the highest percentage of rejection (1.473%), whereas the lowest rate corresponded to whole blood-EDTA (0.381%).
Conclusions: Overall percentage of rejection is similar to previously published data. As some of the included variables have turned out to be irrelevant, the program has been simplified from the year 2006 onwards.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1515/CCLM.2008.168 | DOI Listing |
Adv Lab Med
December 2024
Section of Clinical Biochemistry and School of Medicine, University of Verona, Verona, Italy.
Objectives: Urinalysis is widely used and is also frequently requested in emergency situations for screening hypovolemia, urinary tract infections, diabetes, ketoacidosis and hematuria. Our aim was to evaluate the impact of reporting urinary sediment in emergency department specimens with the Sysmex UN system.
Methods: We evaluated urinalyses requested by the emergency department over a three-month period and examined red blood cell count interference, compared leukocyte esterase dipsticks to cytofluorimetric leukocyte count and nitrites to cytofluorimetric bacterial count.
Clin Chem Lab Med
December 2024
Tyks Laboratories, Clinical Chemistry, Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland.
Objectives: Preanalytical phase is an elemental part of laboratory diagnostics, but is prone to humane errors. The aim of this study was to evaluate performance in preanalytical phase external quality assessment (EQA) cases. We also suggest preventive actions for risk mitigation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFClin Chem Lab Med
December 2024
Department of Medicine, University Hospital Knappschaftskrankenhaus Bochum GmbH, Ruhr-University Bochum, Bochum, Germany.
Objectives: Diurnal variation of plasma glucose levels may contribute to diagnostic uncertainty. The permissible time interval, (), was proposed as a time-dependent characteristic to specify the time within which glucose levels from two consecutive samples are not biased by the time of blood collection. A major obstacle is the lack of population-specific data that reflect the diurnal course of a measurand.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPharmaceuticals (Basel)
October 2024
Department of Nutritional, Food and Consumer Sciences, Fulda University of Applied Sciences, 36037 Fulda, Germany.
Our study presented a novel LC-MS/MS method for the simultaneous quantification of α-tocopherol (α-TOH) and its phase II metabolites, α-13'-COOH and α-13'-OH, in human serum using deuterium-labeled internal standards (d-α-TOH, d-α-13'-COOH, d-α-13'-OH). The method addresses the analytical challenge posed by the significantly different concentration ranges of α-TOH (µmol/L) and its metabolites (nmol/L). Previous methods quantified these analytes separately, which caused an increase in workflow complexity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHealthcare (Basel)
November 2024
Research Unit of Bioethics and Humanities, Department of Medicine and Surgery, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, 00128 Roma, Italy.
: The frozen section intra-operative consultation is a pathology procedure that provides real-time evaluations of tissue samples during surgery, enabling quick and informed decisions. In the pre-analytical phase, errors related to sample collection, transport, and identification are common, and tools like failure mode, effects, and criticality analysis help identify and prevent risks. This study aims to enhance patient safety and diagnostic quality by analyzing risks and optimizing sample management.
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