Ferritin

Test Code

FER

Alias/See Also

Epic: LAB68

Preferred Specimen

Specimen Type: Serum
Collection Container: Serum gel
Specimen Volume: 3 mL

Minimum Volume

0.15 mL

Other Acceptable Specimens

Specimen Type: Plasma
Collection Container: Green top (Lithium heparin)

Instructions

Centrifuge and separate cells after clot formation and within 4 hours of collection. Remove serum if testing will be delayed more than 24 hours

Transport Container

Plastic vial

Specimen Stability

Room temperature: Not defined
Refrigerated (on gel): 24 hours
Refrigerated (off gel): 7 days
Frozen: 1 year

Reject Criteria (Eg, hemolysis? Lipemia? Thaw/Other?)

Samples stored on gel >24 hours, unlabeled, mislabeled, wrong tube type, hemolyzed, QNS, exceeds specimen/stability requirements.

Methodology

Chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassay (CMIA)

Setup Schedule

Daily

Report Available

Same day

Limitations

If the Ferritin results are inconsistent with clinical evidence, additional testing is supposed to confirm the result.
Patients receiving mouse monoclonal antibodies for diagnosis or treatment may develop Human anti-mouse antibodies (HAMA). HAMA may cause falsely elevated or decreased values when tested with assay kits which employ mouse monoclonal antibodies.
Presence of Heterophile antibodies in patient specimens may also cause falsely elevated or falsely decreased results.

Reference Range

Male: 21.8 - 274.7 ng/mL
Female: 4.6-204.0 ng/mL

Male	21.8-274.7 ng/mL
Female	4.6-204.0 ng/mL

Clinical Significance

Ferritin is an iron-containing protein that functions as an iron storage compound, especially in hepatocytes and reticuloendothelial cells. Each ferritin molecule can consist of 20% iron by weight when fully saturated. About 25% of the iron in the body is present in various storage forms, 2/3 present as ferritin.
A low serum ferritin value is a good indicator of iron depletion. Ferritin is useful to distinguish between iron deficient anemia (ferritin values decreased) and anemia of chronic disease (ferritin values normal or increased). Ferritin is a good screening test to distinguish between microcytosis due to iron deficiency (ferritin value decreased) and microcytosis due to thalassemia (ferritin values normal or increased). Elevated ferritin levels are seen in iron overload states, such as hereditary hemochromatosis, acute hepatitis, and Gaucher’s disease. Slightly elevated ferritin levels are seen in malignancy and chronic inflammatory diseases.

Performing Laboratory
Inova Laboratories
2832 Juniper Street
Fairfax, VA 22031

Last Updated: April 10, 2023
Last Review: N. Wolford, March 7, 2023

The CPT Codes provided in this document are based on AMA guidelines and are for informational purposes only. CPT coding is the sole responsibility of the billing party. Please direct any questions regarding coding to the payor being billed. Any Profile/panel component may be ordered separately. Reflex tests are performed at an additional charge.