Search

Copyright of Turkish Journal of Biochemistry / Turk Biyokimya Dergisi is the property of De Gruyter and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background and objective: We aimed to investigate the effect of "training about the pre-analytical phase" and "technological arrangements in laboratory information systems (LISs) and tube barcoding system", on decreasing PEs. Materials and methods: PEs in 2013 and 2014 were obtained from the LIS retrospectively in order to evaluate the effect of improvements. Ten quality indicators (QIs) described for pre-analytical phase were calculated. We compared QIs of the "improved year" with the past year. Four quality specification criteria were defined as "unacceptable", "minimum", "desirable" and "optimum" for each quality indicator. Results: There was a reduction in all types of PEs related to the improvement strategies. When QIs were considered as quality specifications (QSs), QI-14 (number of samples damaged in transport) and QI-16 (samples improperly stored) were "unacceptable", QI-8 (samples lost-not received) and QI-12 (samples with insufficient sample volume) were "minimum" and QI-9 (samples collected in inappropriate container) was "desirable" in 2013; QI-10a, 10b (samples hemolyzed), 11a (samples clotted) and 13 (samples with inadequate sample-anticoagulant) were all "optimum" in 2 years. Conclusion: It was shown that continuous education on pre-analytical phase and improvements of the technological infrastructures are the main factors that will enable the control of this phase. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Vitamin B12 deficiency is still an important nutritional problem worldwide. There is no consensus on the Reference Intervals (RIs) for vitamin B12. In order to establish vitamin B12 RIs, we used the database of primary health care and estimated region specific intervals. Materials and Methods: Vitamin B12 results were collected from our laboratory information system between January 2014 and July 2014. We excluded the results of the individuals who have megaloblastic and microcytic anemia. After outliers detection and exclusion, we estimated the reference intervals of the "1-12, 13-18, 19-44, 45-64, and 65+" age-groups according to the IFCC Method. The statistical differences were examined between groups. Results: The reference limits and 90% confidence intervals (CIs) (n=14 748, 3790 male, ages: 1-96; 10958 female, ages: 1-115) were estimated as 97 (95-99) - 422 (420-424) pmol/L. The reference intervals with the 90%CIs were estimated as 127 (117-144) - 570 (521- 599) and 96 (94-98) - 418 (418-422) pmol/L for 1-12 age-group (n=345) and for 13+ age group (n=14 403), respectively. Conclusion: Both the lower and upper limits of the estimated reference intervals were found lower than the reference limits recommended by the manufacturer. Our findings revealed that the RIs of vitamin B12 should be given for 1-12 and 13+ age groups separately. The big data obtained from laboratories should be used for determination of its population health status. Since our population is composed of the outpatients, the estimated VitB12 reference intervals may establish basic information for examination of our population for the VitB12 deficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) is widely used as an acute phase reactant test which has low sensitivity and high specificity. There are several different methods to determine the ESR, but the conventional Westergren method is still referred to as the reference method and for validation of new ESR methods. The aim of this study was to evaluate the performances of automated ESR systems with the reference Westergren method. Vision device which uses infrared technique and Test-1 device based on the photometrical capillary flow kinetic analysis were evaluated. Materials-Methods: Blood samples were collected from 63 adult patients in K2EDTA and citrated tubes and measured within 4 hours in accordance with recommendation of International Council for Standardization in Haematology. The calculations were performed by using MedCalc Statistical Software version 14. 8. 1. Results: The mean ± SD ESR was 12. 34 ± 11. 14 mm/hr for Weatergren method, 12. 04 ± 11. 16 mm/hr for Test-1 and 12. 52 ± 11. 47 mm/hr for Vision. There was no significant difference between the median values of the Test-1 and Vision and Westergren method (P = 0. 233; P = 0. 409, respectively) There was a significant positive correlation between the three methods (r = 0. 967, r = 0. 995 and r = 0. 959, respectively) (p<0. 0001). Conclusions: Test-1 and Vision devices can be used in routine laboratory when compared with the reference Westergren method. To reduce workload and processing time, it is preferable to use automated sedimentation devices. Nevertheless, the results of patients not compatible with the clinic should be checked with the reference Westergren method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]