Open AccessAn Unusual Case of a Primary Blood Collection Tube with Floating Separator Gel
Author(s) -
Daves Massimo,
Lippi Giuseppe,
Cosio Giovanni,
Raffagnini Alberto,
Peer Evi,
Dangella Andrea,
Oberhollenzer Rainer,
Cemin Roberto
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
journal of clinical laboratory analysis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.536
H-Index - 50
eISSN - 1098-2825
pISSN - 0887-8013
DOI - 10.1002/jcla.21512
Subject(s) - medicine , conventional pci , separator (oil production) , myocardial infarction , percutaneous , centrifugation , chromatography , surgery , chemistry , physics , thermodynamics
We describe an unusual case of a primary evacuated blood collection tube with floating separator gel, which has been collected from a 50‐year‐old man submitted to a percutaneous coronary intervention ( PCI ). The sample was collected from the femoral artery in a primary evacuated blood collection tube containing lithium‐heparin. After centrifugation of the specimen, an unusual positioning of the separator gel was observed, which migrated at the topmost layer, whereas the packed blood cells remained in the middle and the plasma at the bottom. The potential interfering substance was found to be a contrast dye, 140 ml of which were administered to the patient during a revascularization procedure for acute myocardial infarction. The potential aspiration of the gel inappropriately positioned at the top of the tube by laboratory instrumentation can produce several technical and clinical problems, when not reliably detected. First, the needle of the instrument might be partially or completely obstructed by the gel, thus jeopardizing the integrity and correct functioning of the instrument. The aspiration of gel along with the sample matrix might also spuriously modify the test results, since an inappropriate amount of serum or plasma would be analyzed. J. Clin. Lab. Anal. 26:246‐247, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.