On June 28, hemostasis researcher Dave McGlasson asked George, “what temperatures do most of us use to store centrifuged, platelet-poor plasma when testing is delayed?” We assumed most of us use –70ºC freezers, but it may be that many lab practitioners use alternative specimen storage protocols.
George offered to post Dave’s question as our July, 2017 Quick Question. As always, please answer our Quick Question, but feel free to add your comments if your protocol varies from the answers provided. Further, if you know of any published studies comparing storage temperatures, please post the reference in our comments section. Thank you.
Here is a PDF of the article recommended in the first comment below provided by Dr. Vadim Koustosov:
Several others articles
Several others articles regarding storage conditions that were published after 2014:
Foshat M, et al. Effect of freezing plasma at -20°C for 2 weeks on prothrombin time, activated partial thromboplastin time, dilute Russell viper venom time, activated protein C resistance, and D-dimer levels. Clin Appl Thromb Hemost. 2015;21:4–7.
Gosselin RC, et al. Effects of storage and thawing conditions on coagulation testing. Int J Lab Hematol. 2015;37:551–9.
Kim H, et al. Influence of preanalytical variables on prothrombin time, activated partial thromboplastin time, and fibrinogen. Clin Lab. 2015;61:1337–40.
Toulon P, et al. Impact of different storage times at room temperature of unspun citrated blood samples on routine coagulation tests results. Results of a bicenter study and review of the literature. Int J Lab Hematol. 2017, May 8
Rimac V, Coen Herk D. Is it acceptable to use coagulation plasma samples stored at room temperature and 4°C for 24 hours for additional prothrombin time, activated partial thromboplastin time, fibrinogen, antithrombin, and D-dimer testing? Int J Lab Hematol. 2017, May 10
Most recent and comprehensive
Most recent and comprehensive review about all pre-analytical issues in hemostasis laboratory was published in open access: Magnette, A, et al. Pre-analytical issues in the haemostasis laboratory: guidance for the clinical laboratories. Thromb J. 2016; 14: 49. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5154122/
Thanks to Dr. Koustosov,. George has posted a PDF of this comprehensive article in the text of the original post.