In reply to Mike Collin's comment about potassium and delayed separation:
I suspect that potassium leakage from red cells is related to more than
just the amount of glucose present. Firstly plasma potassium falls before
it rises at some temperatures (25 degrees for one) and secondly the
activity of the Na/KATPase is likely to show some temperature dependence.
Our data shows a fall in extra-cellular potassium at 25 degrees but a rise
at 15 degrees. The rise at 15 degrees starts occurring while the glucose is
still above 3 mmol/L (our data). We can however addree the issue by
adopting a fail-safe policy to data interpretation.
It seems to be yet another matter of "there are more things in heaven and
earth than are dreamt of ..."
Regards,
Graham
Graham Jones
Staff Specialist in Chemical Pathology
St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney
Victoria St, Darlinghurst, 2010
NSW, Australia
Ph: (02) 8382-2170 Fax (02) 8382-2489
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