When to collect blood specimens: midmorning vs fasting samples

This study was carried out to define the consequences of collecting blood specimens during the forenoon instead of using fasting specimens collected early in the morning. Extensive laboratory data were obtained from specimens collected from fasting participants at 0800, after breakfast at 0930, and...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Clinical chemistry (Baltimore, Md.) Md.), 1998-12, Vol.44 (12), p.2537-2542
Main Authors: Leppanen, Esa, Dugue, Benoit
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Biological and medical sciences
Blood Specimen Collection - methods
Blood Specimen Collection - standards
Data Interpretation, Statistical
Fasting
Female
Hospitals, Urban
Humans
Inpatients
Investigative techniques, diagnostic techniques (general aspects)
Male
Medical sciences
Middle Aged
Miscellaneous. Technology
Outpatients
Pathology. Cytology. Biochemistry. Spectrometry. Miscellaneous investigative techniques
Time Factors
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Summary:This study was carried out to define the consequences of collecting blood specimens during the forenoon instead of using fasting specimens collected early in the morning. Extensive laboratory data were obtained from specimens collected from fasting participants at 0800, after breakfast at 0930, and again at 1100. The subjects were inpatients in medical and surgical wards (n = 51; 13 women and 38 men; ages, 32-87 years) and subjectively healthy volunteers corresponding to outpatients (n = 51; 31 women and 20 men; ages, 18-63 years). The coefficient of variation (CV, %) of the patient results was compared with the analytical CV. The observed CVs of the subjects' results far exceeded the analytical CV (%), the average being 3.5-fold and up to 14-fold for some analytes. In individual results the observed change often exceeded the medically derived clinical critical difference. Laboratory data should always be interpreted in the context in which they were obtained. Clinical decisions should be based on objective data (observations) more than on experience and educated guesses. Different medical specialities and different clinical situations may require different kinds of procedures.
ISSN:0009-9147
1530-8561
DOI:10.1093/clinchem/44.12.2537