Icterus, also known as jaundice, is used to describe the yellowish-greenish color observed in the sclera of the eyes or in plasma/serum samples of patients with very high concentrations of bilirubin.
What causes icteric plasma?
Icteric serum is caused by the presence of excess bilirubin in the blood stream as a result of increased production (pre-hepatic) or inappropriate excretion (hepatic and post-hepatic).
What does icteric blood mean?
Icterus is also known as jaundice or yellow jaundice. It refers to an excessive accumulation of a yellow pigment in the blood and tissues. When icterus has been present for any length of time, it will discolor many tissues and will become visible as jaundice on most body surfaces, including the skin.
What should happen when a blood sample is discovered to have icteric serum?
An icteric sample would have a spectral interference effect on the results. Volume displacement could occur with either lipemia or hyperproteinemia. Release of enzymes or analytes would occur in a hemolyzed sample.
How does icteric affect lab results?
Icteric index. The number reported under icterus is an estimation of the total bilirubin concentration in mg/dL rounded to the nearest whole number. The icterus index can be used to determine if there is hyperbilirubinemia, i.e. if the total bilirubin is increased, the icteric index should closely match the value seen.
What is the difference between jaundice and icterus?
Icterus is also known as jaundice or yellow jaundice. It refers to an excessive accumulation of a yellow pigment in the blood and tissues. When icterus has been present for any length of time, it will discolor many tissues and will become visible as jaundice on most body surfaces, including the skin.
What does Preicteric mean?
(prē-ĭk-tĕr′ĭk) [″ + ikteros, jaundice] In liver disease, the period prior to the appearance of jaundice.
What does mild hepatomegaly mean?
Summary. Hepatomegaly is the medical term for an enlarged liver. It is a symptom of disease, not a disease in itself. Some conditions that can cause hepatomegaly include fatty liver diseases, alcohol use disorder, hepatitis, and cancer.
What does icteric specimen mean?
A specimen that exhibits a yellowish pigmentation due to jaundice. ( NCI Thesaurus)
What does icteric serum look like?
Icterus (or the icterus index) is a measure of the yellow colour of serum. This colour is normally due almost exclusively to the presence of bilirubin, a hemoglobin waste product from the red blood cells. The icterus index is expressed as a number of “plus” signs (from zero to ++++).
What is bound to conjugated bilirubin?
Bilirubin conjugated with glucuronic acid also binds to albumin but with much lower affinity. Another form of bilirubin (probably conjugated), very tightly (probably covalently) bound to albumin, has been described.
What does slight lipemia mean?
Overview. Lipaemia is defined as an abnormally high concentration of lipids in the blood, usually in the form of very low density lipoproteins (VLDLs) or chylomicrons. Characteristically the blood plasma may appear white or milky in colour due to the presence of fat.
What causes icterus?
The most common causes include gallstones and malignancy, such as pancreatic cancer and cholangiocarcinoma. In adults, scleral icterus can also occur due to liver dysfunction. Causes include drug-induced liver disease, parasites (liver fluke), viral hepatitis, and alcoholic and non-alcoholic cirrhosis.
What analytes are affected by icteric?
Results. Eight analytes increased (FRUC and Phos) or decreased (CHOLT, CREA, HDLc, PROT, TG, and UA) significantly when I ict increased. FRUC, HDLc, PROT, and UA showed a linear relationship when I ict increased. A non‐linear relationship was found for TG, CREA, and for CHOLT; this also depended on analyte levels.
What color is icteric serum?
Serum bilirubin and the yellow color of icteric serum.
