Specimen Requirements
Minimum of 3.0 mL serum; alternately 3.0 mL serum from Red Top tube
Supplies for Submission
SST/Gold Top (1); alternately Red Top (1)
Specimen Collection
- Label 3 plastic transport tubes with two identifiers. Acceptable identifiers include patient’s name, date of birth, social security number, requisition number, and medical record number.
Label the tubes appropriately as SST or Red Top serum. - Allow SST contents to clot in an upright position for at least 30 minutes (60 minutes for Red Top tube).
- Centrifuge within 2 hours of collection.
- Transfer 1 mL serum to each of the 3 plastic transport tubes and refrigerate.
Storage Requirements
Refrigerated.
Specimens are stable if refrigerated for 2 weeks or frozen for 1 month.
Causes for Rejections
Plasma specimens or specimens with the following conditions are not accepted:
- hemolysis
- lipemia
- icterus
- contaminated
- heat-inactivated