Module HEME-07 · Version 1.0
When CBC Results Are Spurious
Use CBC internal consistency, specimen evidence, analyzer information, and validated verification methods to recognize and investigate spurious results before release.
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Who this module is for
Medical laboratory scientists and trainees who perform, review, or release automated complete blood count results.
Learning objectives
- Recognize common discordant CBC parameter relationships.
- Differentiate cold agglutination, lipemic or cell-free-hemoglobin photometric bias, RBC destruction, platelet artifacts, short fills, and extreme leukocytosis.
- Select a method-appropriate corrective or verification action and endpoint within local policy.
How completion works
Mark every required section done and answer every knowledge check in those sections correctly. The final save completes the module automatically.
Sources
14 sources
1. 42 CFR § 493.1291, Standard: Test report (CLIA), current as amended
Source note · federal regulation
2. 42 CFR § 493.1105, Standard: Retention requirements (CLIA), current as amended
Source note · federal regulation
3. College of American Pathologists, Hematology and Coagulation Checklist (sample edition), CAP Accreditation Program
Source note · accreditation standard
4. CLSI H20, Reference Leukocyte Differential Count and Evaluation of Instrumental Methods, 3rd ed.
Source note · consensus standard
5. ICSH guidelines for evaluation of blood cell analysers, International Journal of Laboratory Hematology, 2014, doi:10.1111/ijlh.12201
Source note · consensus standard
6. ICGHR, Suggested criteria for action following automated CBC and WBC differential analysis, PMID 16024331
Source note · professional society guidance
7. GFHC, Breaking Free From MCHC Interferences? PMC12426809
Source note · peer-reviewed literature
8. Unreliable Automated Complete Blood Count Results: Causes, Recognition, and Resolution, PMC9057813
Source note · peer-reviewed literature
9. How to handle lipemic CBC samples on Sysmex hematology analyzers? PMC12107407
Source note · peer-reviewed literature
10. Discovery and Correction of Spurious Low Platelet Counts due to EDTA-Dependent Pseudothrombocytopenia, PMC6807034
Source note · peer-reviewed literature
11. Pseudothrombocytopenia: A Review on Causes, Occurrence and Clinical Implications, PMC7915523
Source note · peer-reviewed literature
12. GFHC, Platelet Counting: Ugly Traps and Good Advice, PMC7141345
Source note · peer-reviewed literature
13. Underfilled tubes revisited: What blood tests can be reported on short draws? American Journal of Clinical Pathology, 2025
Source note · peer-reviewed literature
14. Sysmex America, XN-Series Automated Hematology Analyzers product brochure and comparison materials
Source note · manufacturer labeling