Short-Term Stability of Hematologic Parameters in Frozen Whole Blood

Abstract

Background: Complete blood counts (CBCs) are commonly obtained in large multicenter studies. We assessed the stability of 10 parameters after short-term (up to 30 days) frozen storage. Methods: We compared CBC measurements from fresh samples (n = 53) with samples stored for up to 30 days at −70 °C. We calculated the CVs and intraclass correlation coefficients. Results: Mean values of most parameters, with the exception of hemoglobin and platelet count, were significantly different by 15 days of storage. White blood cell count (CV, 38.3%; 95% CI, 31.3%–46.2%) and red cell distribution width (CV, 37.7%; 95% CI, 34.1%–41.3%) were the most variable. After 30 days, only hemoglobin remained stable and reliable (CV, 0.8%; 95% CI, 0.4%–1.3%). Conclusions: Hemoglobin remained stable in frozen blood samples stored for up to 30 days at −70 °C and may be reliably used in research studies using short-term frozen specimens. Other CBC parameters measured in stored blood are not sufficiently reliable for research or patient care.

Common and Novel Markers for Measuring Inflammation and Oxidative Stress Ex Vivo in Research and Clinical Practice—Which to Use Regarding Disease Outcomes?

“…Especially basophilic counts have shown to change drastically with storage of samples at 4 °C [ 401 ]. Freezing, even for a few days at −70 °C can result in significant changes in counted cell populations [ 327 ]. Cell counting in the clinic is done by several automated systems, including impedance and optical systems, as well as image cytometers [ 328 ].…”

Preclinical coronavirus studies and pathology: Challenges of the high-containment laboratory

“…Certain pieces of equipment require calibration with non–shelf-stable reagents immediately prior to running samples, such as a hematology analyzer, or use large reagent plates for multiple samples, such as many multiplexing assay analyzers; it is not financially feasible to run one or two samples on these pieces of equipment, and therefore, individual samples are often stored until a large enough number are obtained, which can affect assay outcome. 32 Storing items in containers that cannot be easily decontaminated such as Styrofoam or cardboard is also discouraged, and so personnel minimize the number of reagents and supplies kept in the BSL3 and instead bring in only the items they need for the experiment on which they are actively working. Therefore, animal experiments and collection of tissues for pathology in the BSL3 lab require advanced planning to ensure BSC’s in which to work and appropriate materials and reagents are available and accessible.…”

“…Initially, one might imagine running a complete blood count (CBC) on a hematology analyzer to be straightforward, as the equipment does not have a large footprint, is inexpensive, and often has been optimized for small sample volumes collected from rodents. However, fluid samples often need to be analyzed soon after collection and cannot be stored without compromising downstream analyses, 32 requiring the assays to be performed in the BSL3 facility. The analyzer itself generates aerosols when taking up blood samples, 38 requiring them to be housed in a BSC during operation, and the waste generated by the instrument must be decontaminated without compromising the future technical capability of the instrument.…”

Perbedaan Hasil Pemeriksaan Hematologi yang Segera Dilakukan Pemeriksaan dan yang Ditunda pada Suhu Ruangan dan Refrigerator menggunakan Sysmex XP-300

“…Haematology (ICSH) merekomendasikan pemeriksaan apusan darah tepi tidak melebihi dari 1 jam, karena terjadi perubahan morofologi sel darah 30 menit setelah pengambilan darah pada suhu ruang (Vives-Corrons et al, 2014;Zini, 2014). Perubahan morfologi sel akan mempengaruhi kemampuan HA dalam melakukan analisis, sehingga dapat mempengaruhi keakuratan pemeriksaan (Zini, 2014;Jain et al, 2018;Tang et al, 2019). Permasalahannya adalah bagaimana stabilitas pemeriksaan hematologi pada sampel darah EDTA yang ditunda pada suhu ruangan dan refrigerator menggunakan Sysmex XP-300.Penundaan pemeriksaan umumnya terjadi karena pemeriksaan yang tidak dapat dilakukan segera atau bisa di sebabkan karena penyimpanan.…”

“…Permasalahannya adalah bagaimana stabilitas pemeriksaan hematologi pada sampel darah EDTA yang ditunda pada suhu ruangan dan refrigerator menggunakan Sysmex XP-300.Penundaan pemeriksaan umumnya terjadi karena pemeriksaan yang tidak dapat dilakukan segera atau bisa di sebabkan karena penyimpanan. Alasan penundaan dapat disebabkan karena lokasi sampling yang jauh atau petugas laboratorium yang sibuk (Tang et al, 2019).…”