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AMMONIA, plasma (087-0293)
Test Mnemonic:

AMMONIA

Specimen Requirements:
Collection:

7 mL of blood in green-topped tube (lithium or sodium heparin not ammonium heparin). 

Minimum Volume:

3 mL of blood

Storage/Transport:

Delivered to Sample Management within ≤15 minutes of collection.   

Specimen Preparation:

 

Place specimen on ice immediately after collection.  Centrifuge specimens and remove the plasma from the cellular material within 15 minutes of collection.  Place plasma in labeled plastic transport tube. Keep plasma on ice to maintain specimen temperature at 2-8°C.

Stability:

Refrigerated for ≤3 hours; Frozen for ≤24 hours. Do not store at room temperature  

Causes for Rejection:

Specimen collected in red-topped or ammonium heparin vacutainer tube, incomplete and/or incorrect sample identification, improper storage/transport, gross hemolysis, icterus or lipemia.    

Reference Range:

By report (reports may vary based on instrumentation, patient age and sex).

Turnaround Time:

Routine: 8 hours; ASAP: 4 hours; STAT: 1 hour

Methodology:

Colorimetric

Performed:

Clinical Chemistry

CPT 4 Code:

82140

When ordering tests for which Medicare or Medicaid reimbursement will be sought, physicians should only order tests that are medically necessary for the diagnosis or treatment of the patient. Components of the organ or disease panels may be ordered individually. The diagnostic information must substantiate all tests ordered and must be in the form of an ICD-10 code or its verbal equivalent.
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