PRE-ANALYTICAL VARIABLES IN THE COAGULATION LABORATORY - NEW CLSI GUIDELINES

Course overview

Laboratory testing is an integral component of clinical decision-making. The ability to provide optimal clinical care is highly dependent on accurate and reliable laboratory results. Laboratory error leading to the reporting of an erroneous result can be introduced at any point of the testing process, from sample collection to result reporting. Due to the advances in instrument technology and informatics, analytical variability no longer represents the major cause of laboratory inaccuracy. Today the pre-analytical phase of testing is the source of many, if not the majority of inaccurate laboratory results. The pre-analytical phase of testing refers specifically to the point of time beginning with patient identfication and continues to specimen analysis. Understanding those variables in the pre-analytical phase of testing that may impact analysis is critical to providing optimum results. The Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) has recently published updated guidelines on pre-analytical variables for plasma-based hemostasis testing. This teleconference will present an overview of the new CLSI guidelines highlighting the changes that have been made since the previous CLSI publication (H21 A4) on this topic. In addition, the mechanism of impact for many of these pre-analytical variables will be emphasized.