Full presentation by Dr. Nam K Tran delivered to healthcare and laboratory medicine leaders at the Roche Efficiency Days (RED) 2018: REDefining perspectives in Guangzhou, China.

Interfering substances serve as confounding factors in laboratory testing. These interfering substances may be endogenous or exogenous in nature. Endogenous interferences could be due to the patient’s physiologic state. Alternately, common exogenous interferences include medications and environmental factors. Immunoassays are inherently susceptible to a variety of interfering substances. Fibrin, heterophilic antibodies, metabolite cross reactivity, and medications, are just a few examples. Implementing a proactive process augmented by patient/physician education, and knowing the prevalence of interferences in a population are core principles that help laboratorians successfully prevent and/or address immunoassay interferences. UC Davis Health implemented these principles in addressing immunoassay biotin interference.

A single approach for addressing immunoassay interference is insufficient. Developing a proactive system to identify interferences before testing is performed, knowing each hospital’s population and the prevalence of known interferences, and educating the public on interferences is instrumental in successfully navigating these challenges.