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Iron and Total Iron Binding Capacity
Test Code7573
CPT Codes
83540, 83550
Includes
Iron, Total
Iron Binding Capacity
% Saturation (calculated)
Iron Binding Capacity
% Saturation (calculated)
Preferred Specimen
1 mL serum
Patient Preparation
Samples should be taken in the morning from patients in a fasting state, since iron values decrease by 30% during the course of the day and there can be significant interference from lipemia.
Minimum Volume
0.5 mL
Other Acceptable Specimens
Plasma collected in: Sodium heparin (green-top) tube or lithium heparin (green-top) tube
Transport Temperature
Room temperature
Specimen Stability
Room temperature: 6 days
Refrigerated: 7 days
Frozen: 28 days
Refrigerated: 7 days
Frozen: 28 days
Reject Criteria (Eg, hemolysis? Lipemia? Thaw/Other?)
Hemolysis • Anticoagulants other than heparin
Methodology
Spectrophotometry (SP)
Setup Schedule
Night
Clinical Significance
Serum iron quantification is useful in confirming the diagnosis of iron-deficiency anemia or hemochromatosis. The measurement of total iron binding in the same specimen may facilitate the clinician's ability to distinguish between low serum iron levels caused by iron deficiency from those related to inflammatory neoplastic disorders. The assay for iron measures the amount of iron which is bound to transferrin. The total iron binding capacity (TIBC) measures the amount of iron that would appear in blood if all the transferrin were saturated with iron. It is an indirect measurement of transferrin concentrations but expressed as an iron measurement. To obtain the percent saturation, the serum iron is divided by the TIBC which gives the actual amount of saturated transferrin. The percent saturation is low in iron deficiency and high in iron storage diseases.
