Patient should be calm and seated for 15 minutes prior to collection. Alternately, patient may be calm and supine for 30 minutes prior to collection. Drugs and medications may affect results and should be discontinued for 72 hours prior to specimen collection, if possible.
Collect
Green (sodium or lithium heparin), lavender (EDTA). Collect on ice.
Additional Requirements
Collect: Green ( Lithium Heparin Tube)
Auto Lab Accepts:
Unacceptable Conditions
Serum or urine.
Specimen Preparation
Specimen should be centrifuged and frozen within one hour (refrigerated centrifuge is preferred but not required). Transfer 3 mL plasma to an ARUP standard transport tube(Min: 1.1 mL)
Ordering Recommendations
Not recommended for evaluation of pheochromocytoma or paraganglioma. Use to evaluate clinical symptoms of excess catecholamine secretion. For the assessment of pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma, refer to Metanephrines, Plasma (Free) (0050184) or Metanephrines Fractionated by HPLC-MS/MS, Urine (2007996).
Storage/Transport Temperature
CRITICAL FROZEN. Separate specimens must be submitted when multiple tests are ordered.
Stability (from collection to initiation)
After separation from cells: Ambient: Unacceptable; Refrigerated: Unacceptable; Frozen at -20 C: 1 month; Frozen at -70 C: 1 year
Performed
Sun-Sat
Reported
1-4 days
Notes
Medications may interfere with catecholamines and metabolites. The effect of drugs on catecholamine results may not be predictable. (N Rifai, A R Horvath, and C Wittwer. Tietz Textbook of Clinical Chemistry and Molecular Diagnostics. Sixth edition. St. Louis, Missouri: Elsevier, 2018; Table 63.9.)
For optimum assessment, patient should be supine for 30 minutes prior to specimen collection.
Children, particularly those under 2 years of age, often show an elevated catecholamine response to stress.
Lab info
Specimens are sent by the Core Laboratory to ARUP Laboratory.
Section
Reference Laboratory-ARUP Laboratories
Reference Laboratory Test Code
0080216
Methodology
Quantitative High Performance Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry
Synonyms
Adrenalin
Catecholamine Fractionation
Catecholamines, Free
Dopamine
Epinephrine
Noradrenaline
Norepinephrine
Plasma Catecholamines
Reference Interval
Components
Reference Interval
Dopamine
18 years and older
Seated (15 min)
Less than or equal to 240 pmol/L
Epinephrine
18 years and older
Seated (15 min)
Less than or equal to 330 pmol/L
Norepinephrine
18 years and older
Seated (15 min)
1050-4800 pmol/L
Interpretive Data
Small increases in catecholamines (less than 2 times the upper reference limit) are usually the result of physiological stimuli, drugs, or improper specimen collection. Significant elevation of one or more catecholamines (2 or more times the upper reference limit) can result from a neuroendocrine tumor. Measurement of plasma or urine fractionated metanephrines should be used for assessment of suspected pheochromocytoma or paraganglioma.
Lower catecholamine concentrations are observed in specimens collected from supine adults.
To convert to picograms per milliliter (pg/mL), multiply the reported concentration for dopamine by 0.153, epinephrine by 0.183, and norepinephrine by 0.169
Access complete set of age- and/or gender-specific reference intervals for this test in the ARUP Laboratory Test Directory (aruplab.com).
Supine Reference Intervals
Dopamine
Less than or equal to 240 pmol/L
Epinephrine
Less than or equal to 265 pmol/L
Norepinephrine
680-3100 pmol/L
ARUP Test Code
0080216
LOINC
49257-9
14703-3
14711-6
14852-8
CPT Codes
82384
Test Information
EPIC Lab Number
LAB5376
Patient Preparation
Patient should be calm and seated for 15 minutes prior to collection. Alternately, patient may be calm and supine for 30 minutes prior to collection. Drugs and medications may affect results and should be discontinued for 72 hours prior to specimen collection, if possible.
Collect
Green (sodium or lithium heparin), lavender (EDTA). Collect on ice.
Additional Requirements
Collect: Green ( Lithium Heparin Tube)
Auto Lab Accepts:
Unacceptable Conditions
Serum or urine.
Specimen Preparation
Specimen should be centrifuged and frozen within one hour (refrigerated centrifuge is preferred but not required). Transfer 3 mL plasma to an ARUP standard transport tube(Min: 1.1 mL)
Ordering Recommendations
Not recommended for evaluation of pheochromocytoma or paraganglioma. Use to evaluate clinical symptoms of excess catecholamine secretion. For the assessment of pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma, refer to Metanephrines, Plasma (Free) (0050184) or Metanephrines Fractionated by HPLC-MS/MS, Urine (2007996).
Storage/Transport Temperature
CRITICAL FROZEN. Separate specimens must be submitted when multiple tests are ordered.
Stability (from collection to initiation)
After separation from cells: Ambient: Unacceptable; Refrigerated: Unacceptable; Frozen at -20 C: 1 month; Frozen at -70 C: 1 year
Performed
Sun-Sat
Reported
1-4 days
Notes
Medications may interfere with catecholamines and metabolites. The effect of drugs on catecholamine results may not be predictable. (N Rifai, A R Horvath, and C Wittwer. Tietz Textbook of Clinical Chemistry and Molecular Diagnostics. Sixth edition. St. Louis, Missouri: Elsevier, 2018; Table 63.9.)
For optimum assessment, patient should be supine for 30 minutes prior to specimen collection.
Children, particularly those under 2 years of age, often show an elevated catecholamine response to stress.
Lab info
Specimens are sent by the Core Laboratory to ARUP Laboratory.
Section
Reference Laboratory-ARUP Laboratories
Reference Laboratory Test Code
0080216
Methodology
Quantitative High Performance Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry
Synonyms
Adrenalin
Catecholamine Fractionation
Catecholamines, Free
Dopamine
Epinephrine
Noradrenaline
Norepinephrine
Plasma Catecholamines
Reference Interval
Components
Reference Interval
Dopamine
18 years and older
Seated (15 min)
Less than or equal to 240 pmol/L
Epinephrine
18 years and older
Seated (15 min)
Less than or equal to 330 pmol/L
Norepinephrine
18 years and older
Seated (15 min)
1050-4800 pmol/L
Interpretive Data
Small increases in catecholamines (less than 2 times the upper reference limit) are usually the result of physiological stimuli, drugs, or improper specimen collection. Significant elevation of one or more catecholamines (2 or more times the upper reference limit) can result from a neuroendocrine tumor. Measurement of plasma or urine fractionated metanephrines should be used for assessment of suspected pheochromocytoma or paraganglioma.
Lower catecholamine concentrations are observed in specimens collected from supine adults.
To convert to picograms per milliliter (pg/mL), multiply the reported concentration for dopamine by 0.153, epinephrine by 0.183, and norepinephrine by 0.169
Access complete set of age- and/or gender-specific reference intervals for this test in the ARUP Laboratory Test Directory (aruplab.com).
