Interpretation of common endocrine laboratory tests: technical pitfalls, their mechanisms and practical considerations.
Publication/Presentation Date
1-1-2019
Abstract
Pitfalls in hormonal assays are commonly seen in clinical practice and may lead to erroneous clinical impressions and treatments. In this article, we address common laboratory pitfalls encountered during evaluation of patients with real or presumed endocrine disorders including high dose hook effect and falsely normal prolactin in cases of macroprolactinomas, macroprolactinemia and falsely elevated prolactin, macrothyrotropinemia and falsely elevated TSH, heterophile antibodies leading to false elevation of hormonal concentration, biotin interference with different hormonal assays, cross-reactivity of steroid hormones immunoassays, and others. We describe the mechanisms of such laboratory pitfalls, review clinical scenarios in which they might occur, and discuss the ways to resolve such conundrums. The aim of this article is to present a learning material for the endocrine trainees and practitioners.
Volume
5
First Page
12
Last Page
12
ISSN
2055-8260
Published In/Presented At
Haddad, R. A., Giacherio, D., & Barkan, A. L. (2019). Interpretation of common endocrine laboratory tests: technical pitfalls, their mechanisms and practical considerations. Clinical diabetes and endocrinology, 5, 12. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40842-019-0086-7
Disciplines
Medicine and Health Sciences
PubMedID
31367466
Department(s)
Department of Medicine
Document Type
Article