Abstract
Goals: The goal of this work was to determine if immediate versus postponed centrifugation of samples affects the levels of serum potassium. Methods: Twenty participants donated normal venous blood that was collected in four serum separator tubes per donor, each of which was analyzed at 0, 1, 2, or 4 hr on the Siemens Advia 1800 autoanalyzer. Results: Coefficients of variation (CVs) for potassium levels ranged from 0% to 7.6% with a mean of 3 ± 2%. ANOVA testing of the means for all 20 samples showed a P-value of 0.72 (>0.05) indicating that there was no statistically significant difference between the means of the samples at the four time points. Sixteen samples were found to have CVs that were ≤5%. Two samples showed increases of potassium from the reference range to levels higher than the upper reference limit, one of which had a 4-hr value that was within the reference or normal range (3.5-5 mEq/l). Overall, most samples were found to have reproducible levels of serum potassium. Conclusions: Serum potassium levels from stored whole blood collected in serum separator tubes are, for the most part, stable at room temperature for at least 4 hr prior to analysis. However, some samples can exhibit significant fluctuations of values.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 244-247 |
Number of pages | 4 |
Journal | Journal of Clinical Laboratory Analysis |
Volume | 30 |
Issue number | 3 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - May 1 2016 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Potassium
- Reproducibility
- Serum level
- Storage
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Immunology and Allergy
- Hematology
- Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
- Clinical Biochemistry
- Medical Laboratory Technology
- Biochemistry, medical
- Microbiology (medical)