| Clinical Laboratories of Hawaii recently conducted in-house reference range studies for calcium and uric acid. As a result of the evaluation of the study data, we are making the following adjustments to our reference ranges that will take effect on November 29, 2010 |
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| Complaints of vaginal discharge, vaginal odor and/or vulvar itching
account for more than 10 million physician office visits each year.
Bacterial vaginosis (By), yeast vaginitis (candidiasis) and T.vaginalis
vaginitis (trichomoniasis) are the most common causative agents for
vaginal infection.
The clinical diagnosis of vaginitis has traditionally relied on a microscopic
exam of a wet mount, KOH amine odor test, a pH test of vaginal fluid,
cultures and scored gram stains. These methods are subjective, non
specific and subtle which make the diagnosis vaginitis difficult, particularly
in cases of mixed infection. |
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| Pertussis, or whooping cough, is a disease of the respiratory tract caused by Bordetella pertussis and Bordetella parapertussis. The latter causes a less severe form of pertussis. These Gram negative, non-motile, aerobic, coccobacilli produce a cytotoxin which binds to the cilia of respiratory epithelial cells, inhibiting clearing of debris from the lungs, and resulting in the characteristic coughing-whooping fits. The bacteria is spread via airborne droplets produced by sneezing and coughing. Infants and young children are most susceptible to infection and serious complications. After an incubation period of five to ten days, symptoms resembling a common cold appear, with runny nose, watery eyes, sneezing, fever, and a mild cough. Bursts of rapid coughing followed by a high-pitched whoop develop which may last four to eight weeks. The most contagious stage of the disease occurs two weeks after the coughing begins. The most effective way to prevent pertussis is through immunization with the pertussis vaccine. |
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As An Adjunct to Hemoglobin A1C Interpretation
Findings of recent studies have identified the existence of a linear relationship between Hemoglobin A1C (HA1C) and average blood glucose levels.
The formula used to determine this value is:
28.7 X A1C - 46.7 = eAG mg/dL
Effective July 5, 2010, Clinical Laboratories of Hawaii will begin reporting eAG automatically with all HA1C test orders. This is done at no additional cost and is offered as a convenience for you and your patients. |
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Urine GC/Chlamydia Collection for Females only
Due to strict guidelines specified for optimal urine GC/Chlamydia collections on females it is unacceptable to use the same specimen for clean-catch urinalysis testing. Female patients should NOT use the cleansing wipe because it has a higher likelihood of causing testing failures. In addition, we have validated the test for GC/Chlamydia in female urine, but only with these additional restrictions:
• Patient should not urinate up to 2 hrs prior to collection. Spermicidal agents and feminine powder sprays can interfere. Do not use prior to specimen collection.
• Collect 15-50mL of the FIRST part of a voided urine; i.e, not mid-stream. Anything above 50 mL and the organisms in the specimen may be too diluted to detect. Anything less than 15 mL and there may not be enough organisms present in the specimen to detect.
• Void into a sterile cup.
*** SUBMIT THE ENTIRE URINE CUP *** or note the total
volume of the entire voided urine on the aliquot tube. |
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Fact Sheet for Healthcare Providers:
Interpreting Roche RealTime ready Influenza A/H1N1 Detection Set Test Results
A public health emergency has been declared by the Secretary of Health and Human Services because of the outbreak of the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus. This fact sheet will refer to the virus as 2009 H1N1 influenza virus. ...(more...) |
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Fact Sheet for Patients:
Understanding the Roche RealTime ready Influenza A/H1N1 Detection Set Test Results
Why was my sample tested using the Roche RealTime ready Influenza A/H1N1 Detection Set Test?
Your sample was tested using this test kit because you may have been infected with the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus. ...(more...) |
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| Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths. About 147,000 new cases are diagnosed each year, which has prompted the American Cancer Society to promote screening tests for adults over the age of 50. Even so, there are 41 million Americans who have not been screened for CRC. ...(more...) |
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EFFECTIVE AUGUST 3, 2009
SOME CLH REFERENCE (Normal) RANGES TO CHANGE
During the 4th quarter of 2008 Clinical Laboratories of Hawaii, LLP undertook an extensive reference range study of the majority of analytes on our test menus throughout our entire laboratory system. The study encompassed participants representing the following demographics: ...(more...) |
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C-REACTIVE PROTEIN (CRP) and high sensitivity CRP (hs-CRP)
ANNOUNCING: A Change in Units of Measure from mg/dL to mg/L
The C-reactive protein (CRP) and hs-CRP units of measure will be changing effective June 4th, 2009 to mg/L from mg/dL to be consistent with international units used by manufacturers, regulatory bodies and profi ciency testing agencies. ...(more...) |
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