Abstract
Background: The aim of this study was to examine the effects of long-term storage of blood specimens at various designated temperatures on blood lead levels (BLLs). Methods: Blood specimens were purposely placed under different temperature conditions (room temperature, 4 °C, 0 °C, -20 °C and -85 °C) after phlebotomy and were kept for different durations before analysis. BLLs in these stored specimens were analyzed using a graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrophotometer (GFAAS). Results: The results showed that when blood specimens were kept for longer periods, the measured BLLs tended to decrease. The BLLs of blood samples stored at room temperature were higher than those stored at 4 °C by 0.3378 μg/dL per month, and those stored at 0 °C had levels 0.2945 μg/dL per month lower than the 4 °C storage samples. Conclusions: Although there was a statistically significant difference in BLLs between the specimens stored at room temperature, 0 °C and 4 °C, from the practical standpoint, the variations among the studied samples were negligible.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 211-214 |
| Number of pages | 4 |
| Journal | Journal of Medical Sciences (Taiwan) |
| Volume | 26 |
| Issue number | 6 |
| State | Published - Dec 2006 |
Keywords
- Blood lead levels
- Repeating analysis
- Stability
- Storage temperature conditions