Coffee Colored Plasma: Which Interference Should be Considered?

BACKGROUND: An icteric coloration or lipemic appearance of serum is frequently observed in clinical practice. These changes in appearance can be detected either visually after centrifugation or during the analytical phase by spectrophotometric determination of the HIL indices (hemolysis, icterus, lipemia). These endogenous interferences can be the cause of analytical interferences affecting the accuracy of the results of the analyses carried out. METHODS AND RESULTS: Our observation describes an atypical brown 'coffee-like' coloration of the plasma, causing a discrepancy between the total bilirubin dosed and the icterus index measured on our analytical system. CONCLUSIONS: It is essential to preserve the crucial information gathered during the pre-analytical and analytical phases, in order to avoid improperly cancelling the results or giving incorrect results as a result of analytical interference.