Clinical biochemistry
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Clinical biochemistry · Dec 2015
Observational StudyThe utility of presentation and 4-hour high sensitivity troponin I to rule-out acute myocardial infarction in the emergency department.
International guidance recommends that early serial sampling of high sensitivity troponin be used to accurately identify acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in chest pain patients. The background evidence for this approach is limited. We evaluated whether on presentation and 4-hour high-sensitivity troponin I (hs-cTnI) could be used to accurately rule-out AMI. ⋯ Hs-cTnI >99th percentile thresholds measured on presentation and at 4-hours was not a safe strategy to rule-out AMI in this clinical setting irrespective of whether sex-specific 99th percentiles were used, or whether hs-cTnI was combined with ECG results.
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Clinical biochemistry · Dec 2015
Analytical performance of the Abaxis Piccolo Xpress® point of care analyzer in whole blood, serum, and plasma.
To examine the analytical performance of 14 comprehensive metabolic panel analytes on the Abaxis Piccolo Xpress® Point of Care analyzer in serum, plasma, and whole blood. ⋯ The Piccolo Xpress® allows for the delivery of CMP results in a footprint small enough to be stored in a biological safety cabinet, while providing satisfactory performance for the majority of analytes.
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Clinical biochemistry · Dec 2015
Urokinase plasminogen activator receptor and its soluble form in common biopsy-proven kidney diseases and in staging of diabetic nephropathy.
Soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR), derived from membrane bound uPAR, is associated with inflammatory diseases. In the present study, we explored the expression of uPAR/suPAR in common biopsy-proven kidney diseases and the relationship between suPAR and staging of type 2 diabetic nephropathy (DN). ⋯ We concluded that uPAR/suPAR is elevated in most kidney diseases and that suPAR is a useful biomarker for assessing stages of DN.
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Clinical biochemistry · Dec 2015
Evaluation of a particle enhanced turbidimetric assay for the measurement of neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin in plasma and urine on Architect-8000: Analytical performance and establishment of reference values.
Neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) is a promising biomarker for acute kidney injury. NGAL can be measured in both blood and urine. Apart from kidney injury, NGAL levels in both plasma and urine can be influenced by various pathological situations. Accurate evaluation and comparison of results deriving from clinical studies require robust assays, appropriate specimen handling and reference intervals that will reflect its levels in a healthy population for both biological matrices. ⋯ Our data indicate that NGAL can be measured with adequate precision and sensitivity on automated biochemistry analyzers and its measurement could easily be added to a standard panel to screen kidney diseases.
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Clinical biochemistry · Jul 2015
Ruptured aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage in the emergency department: Clinical outcome of patients having a lumbar puncture for red blood cell count, visual and spectrophotometric xanthochromia after a negative computed tomography.
Over the last decade, computed tomography scanners have gained resolution and have become the standard of care in the investigation of neurologically intact patients suffering from acute headache. The added value of the combined assessment of red blood cells count, visual and spectrophotometric xanthochromia, to detect ruptured aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (ASAH) following a negative head computed tomography (NHCT) was studied. ⋯ Considering the low prevalence of ASAH following an NHCT, intense resources were utilized to identify all 5 ASAH. Lumbar puncture analyses combining red blood cell count, visual and spectrophotometric xanthochromia identified all ASAH, allowing intervention and a positive clinical outcome. Our data support 1) that LP identifies the presence of a ruptured ASAH after an NHCT and 2)` that a guide to define a subpopulation of patients who would benefit from a lumbar puncture after an NHCT would be desirable.