Dear Kelvin
I am bored - can't wait to get onto the squash court and then down the pub.
So what do I do - look at my e-mail! What an interesting debate on potassium
in haemolysed samples! Been going on for years - no absolute solution to the
problems -good. These and the many other important but "contemplating the
navel" issues should keep us as a profession going for ages.
Keith Griffths
> ----------
> From: Kelvin Oh[SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
> Reply To: Kelvin Oh
> Sent: 22 October 1998 15:53
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: reporting serum potassium in haemolysed sepcimen
>
> Dear Helen,
> In our laboratory we have a comment that goes something like this "
> High
> potassium may be falsely elevated in haemolysed specimen, if clinically
> indicated repeat the test at no extra charge" and we do include a value
> for
> the potassium (up to 8 mmol/L). This is to cover ourselve from GP sueing
> us
> for not letting them know how high the potassium really was. Take for
> example a renal patient with a slightly haemolysed specimen and a
> potassium
> level of 6.5mmol/l wouldn't you want to let the doctor know what the value
> is and let him decide whether it is clinically significant?
> Another scenario is again a slightly heamolysed specimen with a
> potassium
> of 5.6mmol/L (our NR is 3.4-5.5 mmol/L)and everything else is normal, if
> you do not include the value in there wouldn't you raise more question for
> the GP. With the comment above plus the value added I think we can protect
> from any wrong doing that may arise as well as providing a better service
> to our doctors.
>
> Kelvin.
> Medical Scientist
>
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