Schedule an Appointment Pay Bill View My Results

Test Directory

Test Directory Norepinephrine, Plasma

Norepinephrine, Plasma

Test Summary

Plasma norepinephrine is an independent risk factor in patients with chronic congestive heart failure that relates to subsequent mortality. Norepinephrine is useful in evaluating patients with hypertension.

Aliases

Specimen Collection

Special Instructions

N/A

Preferred Specimen

2 mL plasma collected in a sodium heparin (green-top) tube - See instructions

Minimum Volume

1 mL

Instructions

Patients should be relaxed in either a supine or upright position before blood is drawn. States of anxiety and stress can cause fluctuations in the catecholamine levels. Draw specimen in a pre-chilled green-top vacutainer.

Plasma should be separated in a refrigerated centrifuge within 30 minutes of collection and then frozen immediately at -20°C in plastic vials. Each specimen will be invoiced separately.

Patient Preparation

Overnight fasting is preferred. Patient should avoid alcohol, coffee, tea, tobacco and strenuous exercise prior to collection.

Storage

Plastic screw-cap vials

Transport Temperature

Frozen

Specimen Stability

Room temperature: 6 hours
Refrigerated: 6 hours
Frozen: 60 days

Limitations

False-positive results have been observed in patients with either chronic kidney disease and hypertension.

Other Acceptable Specimens

Plasma collected in an EDTA (lavender-top) tube - See instructions

Unacceptable Specimens

Received room temperature • Received refrigerated

Order Code

NOREPL

EPIC (Premier) Code

LAB3901

Includes

N/A

CPT Code

82542

Billing Code

670357

CPT Statement

Methodology

Liquid Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry (LC/MS)

FDA Status

This test was developed and its analytical performance characteristics have been determined by Quest Diagnostics. It has not been cleared or approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The FDA has determined that such clearance or approval is not necessary. This assay has been validated pursuant to the CLIA regulations and is used for clinical purposes.

Physician Attestation of Informed Consent

N/A

Testing Laboratory

Quest Diagnostics Nichols Institute
33608 Ortega Highway
San Juan Capistrano CA, 92675

Department

Reference Testing

Reference Range

Norepinephrine, Plasma

<18 years	No Reference Range Available
≥18 years	Supine: 149-564 pg/mL Upright: 199-937 pg/mL

Setup Schedule / Expected Turnaround Time

Monday - Friday evening; Report available: 4 - 7 days