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Test Code LAB46 Ethyl Alcohol, Plasma or Serum

Reporting Title

Ethyl Alcohol

Methodology

Roche Diagnostics  at RMH, GMC, DH, DMH, GMH, GCMH, WECC, PMH, OBH, MGH, MH, HMH, SH, SMC

Note:  This test is for medical use only. No chain-of-custody for legal purposes.

 

VWH Lab Only:

ETOH reagent, when used in conjunction with SYNCHRON LX® System(s), UniCel® DxC 860i System(s) and SYNCHRON® Systems ETOH Calibrator, is intended for quantitative determination of ethyl alcohol concentration in human serum, plasma, urine, or treated whole blood.

Performing Laboratory

OhioHealth Laboratory Services- RMH, GMC, DH, DMH, GMH, MGH, HMH, OBH, MH, SH, GCMH, WECC, BH, PMC, SMC and VWH 

Specimen Requirements

Submit only 1 of the following specimens:

Preferred:

Plasma

Draw blood in a mint green-top (Lithium Heparin) gel tube(s). Spin down and send the entire spun tube for testing.  Do not open the tube and expose the sample to air.  Avoid hemolysis.

Also acceptable: grey-top (potassium oxalate/sodium fluoride) tube

 

Note:  1. Do not use alcohol or other volatile disinfectants to cleanse venipuncture site. Use aqueous ZEPHIRAN®, aqueous merthiolate, or povidone-iodine instead.

2. N-propanol and N-butanol will interfere with the assay.

3. Indicate plasma on request form.

4. Label specimen appropriately (plasma).

NOTE: Lithium Heparin and/or Sodium Heparin may be used on the Grady and the Marion Campus

Alternate:

Serum

Draw blood in a gold-top serum gel tube(s). Spin down and send the entire spun tube for testing.  Do not open and expose serum to air.  Avoid hemolysis.

Note:

1. Do not use alcohol or other volatile disinfectants to cleanse venipuncture site. Use aqueous ZEPHIRAN®, aqueous merthiolate, or povidone-iodine instead.

2. N-propanol and N-butanol will interfere with the assay.

3. A speckled-top serum gel tube (s) or a plain, red-top tube(s) is also acceptable.

3. Indicate serum on request form.

4. Label specimen appropriately (serum).

 

VWH Lab Only:

  • Tubes of blood are to be kept closed at all times and in a vertical position. It is recommended that the serum or plasma be physically separated from contact with cells within two hours from the time of collection.
  • Samples should be analyzed without delay and immediately after opening the sample tube. Precautions should be taken to prevent alcohol evaporation from calibrators, controls and samples.
  • Do not freeze. Ambient specimens are stable for 8 hrs and refrigerated samples are stable for 48 hrs. 

 

 

Roche Specimen Stability Information

Specimen Type Temperature Time
Serum or plasma Refrigerated 2 weeks tightly closed
  Ambient  2 days tightly closed
  Frozen  4 weeks tightly closed

 

Specimen Transport Temperature

Refrigerate: OK

Ambient NO

Frozen NO

Reference Values

Less than 10 mg/dL

Critical value   >400 mg/dL

Alerting category: first instance within 1 hour

 

VWH Lab Only:

Normal range: < 10 mg/dl

Levels of 300 mg/dL (65.1 mmol/L) have been reported to cause coma, and levels of ≥ 400 mg/dL (86.8 mmol/L) may cause death.

Day(s) Test Set Up

Monday through Sunday; Continuously

 

Test Classification and CPT Coding

82077