“Do’s & Don’ts” for Reliable Specimen Quality

The anticoagulant heparin activates antithrombins, thus blocking the coagulation cascade and producing a whole blood/plasma sample making it ideal for rapid analysis and analysis of blood from patients on anticoagulant therapy VACUETTE® Lithium Heparin Separator tubes contain a barrier gel in the tube The specific gravity of this

USE OF ANTICOAGULANTS IN DIAGNOSTIC LABORATORY INVESTIGATIONS

Calcium-titrated heparin at a concentration of 40 to 60 IU/mL blood (dry heparinisation) and 8 to 12 IU/mL blood (liquid heparinisation) is recommended for the determination of ionized calc ium (22) 1 1 4 4 Hirudin Hirudin is an antithrombin extracted from leeches or prepared by a genetic engineering process

ISBER BIOSPECIMEN SCIENCE LITERATURE COMPILATION

Jensen EA, Stahl M, Brandslund I & Grinsted Stability of heparin blood samples during transport based on defined pre-analytical quality goals Clin Chem Lab Med 2008; 46(2): 225-234 Banks RE Preanalytical influences in clinical proteomic studies: Raising awareness of fundamental issues in sample banking Clinical Chemistry 2008; 54(1): 6-7

Coagulation Testing Sample Suitability and Rejection Criteria

9 parts blood to 1 part anticoagulant • Under-filled tubes - prolonged clotting times • Prolongation may be reagent dependent • < 90 fill is unacceptable unless locally validated • More forgiving with 3 2 vs3 8 sodium citrate* • Small volume tubes are less forgiving** • Samples with hematocrit > 55 require adjustment of citrate