Ordering Recommendation

Use for nutritional assessment of vitamin C.

Methodology

Quantitative High Performance Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Performed

Sun, Tue-Thu, Sat

Reported

1-6 days

New York DOH Approval Status

This test is New York DOH approved.

Specimen Required

Patient Preparation
Collect

Green (sodium or lithium heparin). Place specimen in ice bath immediately. Also acceptable: Plasma separator tube.

Specimen Preparation

Protect from light, centrifuge, transfer plasma and freeze within 1 hour of collection. Transfer 0.5 mL plasma to an ARUP Amber Transport Tube. (Min: 0.3 mL)

Storage/Transport Temperature

CRITICAL FROZEN AND LIGHT PROTECTED. Separate specimens must be submitted when multiple tests are ordered

Unacceptable Conditions

EDTA plasma, whole blood, or body fluids. Grossly hemolyzed specimens.

Remarks

Thawing and refreezing of the specimen and exposure to light will result in decreased Vitamin C concentration.

Stability

After separation from cells: Ambient: Unacceptable; Refrigerated: Unacceptable; Frozen: 30 days

Reference Interval

23-114 µmol/L

Interpretive Data

Vitamin C concentrations lower than 11 µmol/L indicate deficiency. Concentrations between 11 and 23 µmol/L are consistent with a moderate risk of deficiency due to inadequate tissue stores.

Vitamin C concentration is reported as micromoles per liter (µmol/L). To convert concentration to milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL), multiply the result by 0.0176.

This test was developed and its performance characteristics determined by ARUP Laboratories. It has not been cleared or approved by the US Food and Drug Administration. This test was performed in a CLIA certified laboratory and is intended for clinical purposes.

Compliance Category

Laboratory Developed Test (LDT)

Note

Fasting specimen preferred. Thawing and refreezing of the specimen and exposure to light will result in decreased Vitamin C concentration.

Hotline History

N/A

CPT Codes

82180

Components

Component Test Code* Component Chart Name LOINC
0080380 Vitamin C, Plasma 1903-4
* Component test codes cannot be used to order tests. The information provided here is not sufficient for interface builds; for a complete test mix, please click the sidebar link to access the Interface Map.

Aliases

  • Ascorbate
Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid), Plasma