Collection Protocol

Collect blood in appropriate vacutainer tube. Allow blood to clot at room temperature for 30 to 60 minutes prior to separation. Centrifuge to separate serum from the clot. Transfer (pipette) serum into plain leakproof tube.

Avoid hemolysis and lipemia. Fasting is only necessary to avoid lipemia. If the sample is not lipemic, non-fasting is okay. If the sample is still lipemic after fasting or fasting is medically contraindicated, indicate on the submittal form and submit.

Unspun samples will not be accepted. Do not send whole blood. Do not ship samples in serum separator tubes.

Shipping Requirements

Refrigerate (no longer than overnight) or freeze sample until shipment. Ship on ice via overnight or second day courier.

We recommend shipping with an ice pack using the MSU VDL Insulated Mailer with UPS (99220 - Single, 99221 - 3 pack or 99222 - 6 pack).

Additional Information

This profile includes total T4 (TT4), total T3 (TT3), and free T4 by equilibrium dialysis (FT4d).

This profile may be performed to diagnose hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism in species other than dogs or cats. It may also be used to monitor thyroid therapy in cats.