LSG

UTMB Pathology Clinical Services provides Clinical and Anatomical Pathology services to UTMB Hospital and Clinics, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ), and various other community agencies and physicians.

This guide is designed to provide a convenient compendium of information of the services offered by the department, as well as to describe the logistics involved in the ordering of tests. In many instances, the complexities of biological testing in the modern laboratory cannot be completely described in print and users should avail themselves of the expert advice offered by the professional and technical staff of the department.

Note: Tests sent out to ARUP, our primary reference lab, are specified in the test menu and linked to the ARUP search engine.

NOTICES!!!

Sample Time of Collection

Effective April 1, 2012, the time of collection for samples must be provided on each requisition. The laboratory will reject (not test) samples when the requisition is missing the time of collection. Refer to the Test Request requirements on the Specimen Collection page of the LSG for requirements. Laboratory policy 7.01.03 Specimen Labeling Requirements also specifies information required to be submitted with each requisition. This change is necessitated to comply with CLIA federal regulations for TEST REQUESTS.

Sample Processing and Storage

Specimen processing and storage instructions have been updated for the tests listed below. Effective April 1, 2012, the laboratory will reject samples that do not meet processing and storage requirements as specified below. This change is necessitated to comply with manufacturer’s instructions for each test and federal CLIA regulations for SAMPLE SUBMISSION, HANDLING, and REFERRAL.

TEST	PROCESSING Centrifugation Speed/Time	STORAGE
aPTT (Activated Partial Thromboplastin Time)	15 minutes at 2000-2500g	Plasma 4 hrs at 20 +/- 5°C. Patients on heparin therapy -plasma is stable for 2 hrs at 20 +/- 5°C when collected in 3.2% sodium citrate (blue top). Frozen plasma 2 Weeks at -20°C. Frozen plasma 12 months at -70°C or colder
PT (Prothrombin Time)	15 minutes at 2000-2500g	Whole blood 24 hours at room temp. Plasma 8 hous at 20+/- 5°C. Frozen plasma 6 months at -20°C.
Fibrinogen	15 minutes at 2000-2500g	Plasma 4 hrs at 20 +/- 5°C. Frozen plasma 2 Weeks at -20°C. Whole blood 4 hours at room temperature.
Factor VIII Assay	15 minutes at 2000-2500g	Plasma 4 hours at 20+/- 5°C. Frozen 15 days at -20°C. Whole blood 4 hours at room temperature.
Reptilase Time	15 minutes at 2500g	Plasma storage 8 hours at 20+/- 5°C. Frozen 2 weeks at -200C. Whole blood 4 hours at room temperature.
Antithrombin III	15 minutes at 2000-2500g	Plasma 8 hours at 20+/- 5°C. Frozen at -20 °C 1 month. Whole blood 4 hours at room temperature.
Thrombin Time	10 minutes at 2500g	Plasma storage 8 hours at 20+/- 5°C. Patients on heparin therapy plasma is stable for 2 hours at 20+/- 5°C . Frozen plasma 2 weeks at -200C. Whole blood 4 hours at room temperature.
D-Dimer	15 minutes at 2000-2500g	Plasma storage 8 hours at 20+/- 5°C. Frozen 1 month at -20°C.
DRVVT (Dilute Russell’s Viper Venom Tme)	double centrifuge the specimen for 15 minutes at 1500g.	Plasma 4 hrs at 2-4°C. Frozen plasma stored at -20 or below 6 months. Whole blood 4 hours at room temperature.
FDP (Fibrin/Fibrinogen Degradation Products)	15 minutes at 2000-2500g	Plasma 8 hours at 20+/- 5°C. Frozen at -20 °C 1 month. Whole blood 4 hours at room temperature.
LDH (Lactase Dehydrogenase)	Centrifuge and separate serum from red cells within 1 hour of collection	Stable at room temperature (18 - 28^oC) for 2 days. Refrigerated or frozen samples are not recommended.

MINIMUM VOLUME REQUIREMENTS

Effective April 1, 2012, the laboratory will reject (not test) samples that do not meet the minimum volume requirements specified in the Laboratory Survival Guide for each test. This change is necessitated to comply with manufacturer’s instructions for each test and federal CLIA regulations for SAMPLE SUBMISSION, HANDLING, and REFERRAL.