Cholesterol Panel, Friedewald

Test Code

94712

CPT Codes
**Non-orderable Internal Code Only**

Preferred Specimen

1 mL serum collected in a serum separator tube (SST)

Patient Preparation
If a cholesterol measurement is to be performed along with triglycerides, the patient should be fasting 9-12 hours prior to collection. The assay manufacturer Beckman Coulter advises: "N-Acetyl Cysteine (NAC), when administered in therapeutic concentrations (for the treatment of acetaminophen overdose), has been... determined to interfere with assays for... cholesterol, uric acid" where "NAC interference may lead to falsely low results." According to Beckman Coulter, the NAC interference should be insignificant by 12 hours after completion of the initial loading dose of an IV infusion treatment regimen consisting of an initial loading dose of 150 mg/kg administered over 1 hour, a second dose of 50 mg/kg administered over 4 hours and a third dose of 100 mg/kg administered over 16 hours.

Minimum Volume

0.5 mL

Other Acceptable Specimens

Plasma collected in a sodium or lithium (green-top) tube

Instructions

Centrifuge within 30-60 minutes following collection.

Transport Temperature

Refrigerated (cold packs)

Specimen Stability

Room temperature: 48 hours
Refrigerated: 48 hours
Frozen: 15 days

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

Gross hemolysis; Moderate to gross icterus; Anticoagulants other than heparin

Methodology
Spectrophotometric

Setup Schedule

Set up: Daily; Report available: Next day

Reference Range

See Laboratory Report

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.