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Seasonal pseudohyperkalaemia: no longer an issue?
Helen E Turner1, Roy W A Peake, James J Allison
1Department of Clinical Biochemistry, 1st Floor, Link Building, Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, Foresterhill, Aberdeen AB25 2ZD, UK. hturner2@nhs.net
Annals of Clinical Biochemistry
|November 10, 2011
Summary
Implementing centrifuges in general practices (GPs) significantly reduced spurious hyperkalaemia and seasonal variations in serum potassium results. This quality improvement enhances potassium result accuracy for primary care.
Area of Science:
- Clinical Chemistry
- Laboratory Medicine
- Primary Care Diagnostics
Background:
- Spurious hyperkalaemia is a common issue with potassium results from primary care samples.
- Delayed sample transport and centrifugation contribute to inaccurate potassium levels.
- A retrospective audit compared serum potassium from practice- vs. laboratory-centrifuged samples.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the impact of on-site centrifugation in general practices (GPs) on serum potassium result accuracy.
- To assess the reduction in spurious hyperkalaemia and seasonal variations.
- To improve the quality of potassium results reported to primary care.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective audit of serum potassium results from 87 GPs in the Grampian region (August 2010 - March 2011).
- Comparison of potassium values between samples centrifuged at the GP and those centrifuged upon arrival at the clinical laboratory.
Main Results:
- Median serum potassium results differed significantly between practice- and laboratory-centrifuged samples.
- January 2011 showed a 10.2% increase in median potassium (4.8 mmol/L) compared to August 2010 (4.3 mmol/L).
- Seasonal trends in potassium were not observed in samples centrifuged at source.
Conclusions:
- Introduction of centrifuges in GPs reduced seasonal variation in serum potassium.
- A concurrent decrease in spurious hyperkalaemia cases was observed.
- Overall quality of reported potassium results for primary care has been significantly enhanced.
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