TERMINOLOGIES

Laboratory Medicine

Discipline involved in the selection,

provision & interpretation of
diagnostic testing that uses primarily
samples from patients

Testing involves:
Confirming

a clinical suspicion
Excluding a diagnosis
Assisting in the selection,
optimization & monitoring of
treatment
Providing a prognosis
Screening for a disease in the
absence of clinical signs and
symptoms

Reference Standard
Single

test or a combination
of methods and techniques
including clinical follow-up of
tested patient
Best available method for
establishing the presence or
absence of target condition

Core Laboratories
Provide

high- volume & emergency

testing in many hospitals
Depends on :
Automation
Informatics
Computers
Quality control
Quality management

CLINICAL CHEMISTRY
Branch of medical laboratory science
which deals with the quantitative
analysis of biochemical products
found in biological fluids such as
serum, plasma, urine or spinal fluid.

Importance
Facilitate

the correct
performance of analytical
procedures that yield accurate
and precise information,
aiding patient diagnosis and
treatment

Roles of Medical Technologist

Ensures

achievement of reliable results

by:
Correctly using basic supplies and
equipment
Knowing the different biochemical
substances in terms of their nature,
metabolism, reference ranges and
variables that may affect their analyses
Correlate test results with pathologic
conditions
Performing basic laboratory calculations

 Practicing

quality assurance and

laboratory safety
Perform correctly lab assays used to
measure concentration of specific
analyte
Solve common problems encountered in
the clinical laboratory
Manifest professional behavior and
attitudes

CHEMICALS

Analytical Reagent/ Reagent Grade

suitable

for use in most analytic lab

procedures
Meet the specifications set by American
Chemical Society (ACS)

Ultra Pure
additional purification steps
such chromatography, atomic
absorption, immunoassays or
other techniques that require
extremely pure chemicals
HPLC or chromatographic
labeled

Chemically Pure
Impurity

limitations are not

stated; preparation is not
uniform
Not recommended for
reagent preparation in clin
labs

USP

(United States Pharmacopoeia)

NF ( National Formulary)
Used to manufacture drugs;
limitations established are based
only on that of not being injurious
to health
May or may not meet all assay
requirements

Technical Grade
Used

primarily in manufacturing
and should not be used in the
clin lab

Standards of purity specified by

IUPAC( International Union of Pure and
Applied Chemistry

Grade
Grade
Grade
Grade
Grade

A: atomic weights standards

B: ultimate standards
C: primary standards
D: working standards
E: secondary standards

Primary

standard
Highly purified chemical; can be
measured directly to produce a
substance of exact known
concentration & purity
Secondary standard
Of lower purity

Standard Reference Material

Developed

by National Institute
of Standards and Technology
(NIST)
Certified chemical composition
but may not possess the purity
equivalent of a primary standard
Often used to verify calibration
or accuracy/bias assessment
Used in the manufacture of
calibrators and standard
materials

WATER SPECIFICATIONS

 Distilled

water
Effectively removes bacteria, pyrogens,
particulate matter, dissolved ionized
solids
Deionized water
Prepared from ion exchange resin
Excellent for removal of dissolved ions
derived from gases and solids but is
ineffective for all other contaminants
Does not remove particulate matter,
bacteria or pyrogens

REVERSE OSMOSIS
Remove remnants of
dissolved organic, ionic and
suspended impurities
including microbial and viral
contaminants

Ultrafiltration
Removes

particulate matter,
emulsified solids, most
bacteria & pyrogens
Does not effectively remove
dissolved ionized solids &
gases & most organic
contaminants

Ultraviolet

oxidation and
sterilization
Remove

trace quantities of

organic
contaminants(oxidation)&
bacteria(sterilization
Different wavelengths are used
for these processes- 185 nm for
oxidation & 254 nm for
sterilization

Ozone
Used

primarily in industrial
settings; effectively removes
organic contaminants
Kills bacteria by rupturing the
cell membrane almost
instantaneously( 2 secs)

REAGENT GRADE
WATER

CATEGORIES (CLSI):

CLRW(

Clinical Laboratory Reagent Water)

Meet the specifications for most routine
clin lab use
Electrophoretic analyses, toxicology
screening procedure, preparation of
buffers, standards and controls
SRW( Special Reagent Water
IFW (Instrument Feed Water)
AWW (Autoclave and Wash Water
Water supplied by method manufacturer
Commercially bottled purified water

Types of Water
Type

I
Have the most stringent requirement &
generally suitable for routine lab use
For test methods requiring minimum
interference such as trace metal, iron
and enzyme analyses
Type II
For quality control standard preparation
type III
For glassware washing

Testing Procedures

to determine the
quality of reagent grade water
Measurements

of resistivity
Assess the ionic content of purified water
pH , hardness
Colony counts
Chlorine
Ammonia, PO4, sodium silica
Nitrite or nitrate, CO2, chemical oxygen
demand
Iron, metal detection