Delta aminolevulinic acid, 24-hour urine-994

Test info

  
Delta aminolevulinic acid, 24-hour urine
  
994
  
LAB994
  
MSO
  
ALA
ALA, delta, 24-hour urine
ALA Delta
Δ-Aminolevulinic Acid
  

Diagnose porphyrias

Specimen

  
Urine, 24 hr
  
3 mL aliquot of a 24-hr collection
  
1.0 mL
  

How to collect a 24-hr urine sample

The 24-hour urine container must be kept refrigerated during the entire collection period

  
  1. Measure and record the 24-hour total volume.
  2. Mix well.
  3. pH must be <7.
  4. Transfer a 3 mL aliquot of the urine into a Amber screw-cap polypropylene frozen transport tube/vial - 4mL (LabCorp).
  5. Label the container with the patient's name, date, and time collection started and finished.
  6. The specimen should be protected from light and  frozen immediately and maintained frozen until tested.
  

Frozen (protected from light) - 1 month

Refrigerated (protected from light) - 3 days

  
  • Specimen not protected from light
  • Use of preservative other than 30% acetic acid
  • Use of sodium carbonate preservative

Performance

  
LabCorp Burlington (096354): R-NX
  
Mo, We, Fr
  
3 - 6 days
  

Column chromatography; Ehrlich reagent -spectrophotometry

Clinical and Interpretive info

  

0.5 - 5.1 mg/24 hours

  
Δ-ALA may be increased in attacks of acute intermittent porphyria, hereditary coproporphyria, and porphyria variegata; evaluation of certain neurological problems with abdominal pain; diagnosis of lead or mercury poisoning. Urinary Δ-ALA is not a sensitive indicator of lead poisoning in children because it does not increase until blood lead concentration is 40 μg/dL, well above the recommended level <15 μg/dL. ALA is increased also in tyrosinemia.Porphobilinogen and δ-aminolevulinic acid are the tests of choice for acute intermittent porphyria. Recently the molecular lesions have been identified in a severely affected homozygote with δ-aminolevulinate dehydratase deficient porphyria.

Billing

  
82135
  
Result 26974-6

Tracking

  
06/06/2019
  
02/27/2024
  
02/27/2024