Endocrine Abstracts

Hormones and other analytes that are requested in the investigation of endocrine abnormalities are routinely measured using automated immunoassays in clinical laboratories. Assay kit inserts usually detail interference in terms of % cross reactivity, but this information is not always communicated to the clinician. Another complicating factor is that different assay platforms show different degrees of interference, therefore clinicians need to be aware of the source of their p...

Introduction: Methodological differences in the immunoassay measurement of cortisol are apparent when reviewing External Quality Assessment scheme data. A bimodal distribution is often observed, particularly for samples from female subjects. It has been postulated that some immunoassays are inefficient at removing cortisol from its binding proteins and therefore have the potential to under-recover from female samples. We investigated the results obtained from two immunoassays ...

Background: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a heterogenous condition that affects approximately 12% of females. The diagnosis can be complex and biochemistry tests are routinely relied upon to help identify hyperandrogenaemia and to exclude other conditions. However, although national and international guidelines advocate the use biochemistry tests, little information is provided as to which tests should be used and which other endocrinopathies should be excluded.<p cl...