Journal Information
Journal ID (publisher-id): BM
Journal ID (nlm-ta): Biochem Med (Zagreb)
Title: Biochemia Medica
Abbreviated Title: Biochem. Med. (Zagreb)
ISSN (print): 1330-0962
ISSN (electronic): 1846-7482
Publisher: Croatian Society of Medical Biochemistry and Laboratory Medicine
Article Information
Copyright: 2017, Croatian Society of Medical Biochemistry
License (open-access):
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Date received: 27 February 2017
Date accepted: 05 May 2017
Publication date (print and electronic): 15 June 2017
Volume: 27
Issue: 2
Pages: 426-429
Publisher ID: bm-27-426
DOI: 10.11613/BM.2017.046
Case report of unexplained hypocalcaemia in a slightly haemolysed sample
Author notes:
Corresponding author: michael.cornes@nhs.net
The case presented highlights a common pre-analytical problem identified in the laboratory that was initially missed. It concerns a young, generally healthy adult patient with no significant medical history and no significant family history. They presented with common flu like symptoms to their primary care clinician who considered this was most likely a viral problem that would pass with time. The clinician, however, did some routine bloods to reassure the patient despite a lack of clinical indication. When the sample was analysed the sample was haemolysed with strikingly low calcium. This led to the patient being called into hospital for urgent repeat investigations, all of which turned out to be within normal ranges. On further investigation the original sample was found to be contaminated. This result would normally have been flagged but was missed due to the complication of haemolysis.
Keywords: case report; pre-analytical; contamination; K-EDTA