Specimen Requirements

Patient Preparation

Drugs and medications may affect results and should be discontinued for at least 72 hours prior to specimen collection, if possible.

Collect

24-hour or random urine. Refrigerate 24-hour specimen during collection.

Specimen Preparation

Thoroughly mix entire collection (24-hour or random) in one container. Transfer a 4 mL aliquot to an ARUP standard transport tube. (Min: 2.5 mL) Catecholamines are not stable above pH 7. The pH of such specimens must be adjusted by the addition of 6M HCl acid or sulfamic acid prior to transport. A pH less than 2 can cause assay interference.
Specimen preservation can be extended to 1 month refrigerated by performing one of the following:
  Option 1: Transfer a 4 mL aliquot to an ARUP standard transport tube and adjust pH to 2.0-4.0 with 6M HCl. (Min: 2.5 mL)
  Option 2: Transfer a 4 mL aliquot to an ARUP standard transport tube containing 20 mg sulfamic acid (ARUP Supply #48098), available online through eSupply using ARUP Connect™ or contact ARUP Client Services at 800-522-2787. (Min: 2.5 mL)

Remarks

Record total volume and collection time interval on transport tube and test request form.