Education

This "Pediatric Phlebotomy" presentation addresses the increase in the number of tests available using a blood spot specimen and concerns about bruising, a team was created to investigate causes of bruising and select the best method for collecting blood from infants.

In this “Hot Topic,” William Nichols, M.D., presents a case study that demonstrates how pre- and postanalytic variables of the patient and blood samples can have confounding effects on the laboratory evaluation of coagulation disorders.

The differential diagnosis for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) includes irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). While the clinical presentation is similar, IBD is an inflammatory disease, while IBS is a noninflammatory disease. View this "Hot Topic" to learn about testing for IBD and IBS.

Membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis (MPGN) is a pattern of glomerular injury. Based on the etiology of MPGN, Drs. Sethi and Fervenza proposed a new histologic classification of MPGN into Ig/IC-mediated MPGN and complement-mediated MPGN. In this “Hot Topic,” Senjeev Sethi, M.D., Ph.D., demonstrates the use of the new classification with case studies.

Membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis (MPGN) is a pattern of glomerular injury. Based on the etiology of MPGN, Drs. Sethi and Fervenza proposed a new histologic classification of MPGN into Ig/IC-mediated MPGN and complement-mediated MPGN. In this “Hot Topic,” Senjeev Sethi, M.D., Ph.D., demonstrates the use of the new classification with case studies.

In this “Hot Topic,” Bobbi Pritt, M.D., discusses how Lyme disease is the most common vector-borne illness in the United States and Europe and caused primarily by Borrelia burgdorferi in the United States, while B burgdorferi, B afzelii, and B garinii cause Lyme disease in Europe. We will also discuss using PCR and melting curve analysis to identify a new species of Borrelia.

In this “Hot Topic,” Elitza Theel, Ph.D., discusses how common cases of presumed Lyme disease go unreported each year and discusses scenarios in which testing for Lyme disease is indicated and reviews both recommended and inappropriate testing methodologies. The overall focus is on performance of the CDC endorsed two-tiered serologic testing algorithm and the latest CDC recommendations.

In this "Hot Topic," Dong Chen, M.D., Ph.D., describes how flow cytometry, electron micrographic study, and molecular testing are used to diagnose platelet function disorders.

The diagnosis of Myeloproliferative Neoplasm (MPN) must include an integrated approach and combine the clinical findings with laboratory results. In our latest “Hot Topic,” Rong He, M.D., discusses the subclassification of MPNs and the use of JAK2, CALR, and MPL mutational analysis in diagnosis and prognosis.

Flow cytometric immunophenotyping method can be useful in assessing myeloid dysmaturation. In this “Hot Topic,” Dragon Jevremovic, M.D., Ph.D., describes a new flow cytometric test to detect aberrant patterns of expression in the diagnosis of myelodysplastic syndrome.

In this “Hot Topic,” Loralie Langman, Ph.D., discusses the prevalence of illicit drug use in the United States and describes testing for commonly encountered drugs. She also reviews drug detection limits, confirmation cutoffs, drug metabolism, and interpretation of screening and confirmation drug testing.