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HelpTest Code RBCFOL RBC Folate
Additional Codes
Cayuga Medical Center Lab Test Code: RBCFOL
Test Performed By
Laboratory Corporation of America
Container Name
2 Lavendar top tubes
List Price
$53.00
CPT Codes
82747; 85014
Specimen Type
Whole Blood
Specimen Stability
24 Hours
Specimen Volume
2 full LAV tubes
| Whole Blood | Frozen |
| Lavender-Top (EDTA) Tube | Room Temperature |
Transfer 4 mL from one whole blood tube into a plastic transport tube and freeze. Second whole blood tube should be at room temperature. To avoid delays in turnaround time when requesting multiple tests on frozen samples, please submit separate frozen specimens for each test requested.
Special Instructions
This test may exhibit interference when sample is collected from a person who is consuming a supplement with a high dose of biotin (also termed as vitamin B7 or B8, vitamin H, or coenzyme R). It is recommended to ask all patients who may be indicated for this test about biotin supplementation. Patients should be cautioned to stop biotin consumption at least 72 hours prior to the collection of a sample.
Use
Detect folate deficiency; monitor therapy with folate; evaluate megaloblastic and macrocytic anemia
Additional Information
Folates are compounds of pteroylglutamic acid (PGA) that function as coenzymes in metabolic reactions involving the transfer of single-carbon units from a donor to a recipient compound. Folate, with vitamin B12, is essential for DNA synthesis, which is required for normal red blood cell maturation.2 Humans obtain folate from dietary sources including fruits, green and leafy vegetables, yeast, and organ meats.3 Folate is absorbed through the small intestine and stored in the liver.
Low folate intake, malabsorption as a result of gastrointestinal diseases, pregnancy, and drugs such as phenytoin are causes of folate deficiency.4 Folate deficiency is also associated with chronic alcoholism.5 Folate and vitamin B12 deficiency impair DNA synthesis, causing macrocytic anemias. These anemias are characterized by abnormal maturation of red blood cell precursors in the bone marrow, the presence of megaloblasts, and decreased red blood cell survival.2
Since both folate and vitamin B12 deficiency can cause macrocytic anemia, appropriate treatment depends on the differential diagnosis of the deficiency. Serum folate measurement provides an early index of folate status3; however, folate is much more concentrated in red blood cells than in serum so the red blood cell folate measurement more closely reflects tissue stores.5,6 Erythrocytes incorporate folate as they are formed, and levels remain constant throughout the life span of the cell. RBC folate levels are less sensitive to short-term dietary effects than are serum folate levels. Red blood cell folate concentration is considered the most reliable indicator of folate status.3
Low serum folate during pregnancy has been associated with neural tube defects in the fetus.
Limitations
Folate assays of samples from patients receiving therapy with certain pharmaceuticals (eg, methotrexate or leucovorin), are contraindicated because of the cross-reactivity of folate binding protein with these compounds.1
As with all tests containing monoclonal mouse antibodies, erroneous findings may be obtained from samples taken from patients who have been treated with monoclonal mouse antibodies or have received them for diagnostic purposes.1 In rare cases, interference due to extremely high titers of antibodies to streptavidin and ruthenium can occur.1 The test contains additives that minimize these effects.
Methodology
Electrochemiluminescence Immunoassay (ECLIA)