Browsing by Author "Zemlin, A. E."

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    Electrophoresis test prevalence, requesting patterns, yield and related bone marrow biopsy findings at a South African tertiary hospital : a 5-year retrospective audit
    (Health and Medical Publishing Group, 2017) Naidoo, N.; Erasmus, R. T.; Grewal, R.; Zemlin, A. E.
    Background. Studies of electrophoresis testing (serum protein electrophoresis (SPE), urine protein electrophoresis (UPE), immunofixation electrophoresis (IFE)) in a South African (SA) pathology laboratory setting are limited. Objectives. To evaluate the prevalence, testing pattern and yield of electrophoresis tests performed over a 5-year period in a tertiary academic laboratory and to relate these findings to bone marrow biopsy findings in a few selected cases. Methods. This was a retrospective audit of all SPE, UPE and IFE tests performed on new and follow-up adult patients (aged ≥18 years) from 2010 to 2015, using data from the Tygerberg Academic Hospital (Cape Town, SA) National Health Laboratory Service hospital information system database. A subgroup analysis of all patients with negative serum (SIFE) and/or urine immunofixation (UIFE) tests who had concurrent bone marrow biopsies close to the time of IFE testing was also performed. Results. A total of 5 086 SPE tests were performed (44.3% were follow-up tests, and of these patients 13.8% had SIFE tests); 1 299 UPE tests were performed (23.3% were follow-up tests, and of these patients 33.6% had UIFE tests). The mean ages of patients who had SIFE and UIFE tests were 59 years (standard deviation (SD) 14.2) and 60 years (SD 15), respectively. The female-to-male ratio was 1.1:1 for both SIFE and UIFE. The negative test yields for SIFE and UIFE were 31.3% and 52.1%, respectively. Bone marrow biopsy findings for patients with negative SIFE tests identified 8 out of the 20 biopsies (40.0%) as positive for myeloma. Conclusion. This audit provides baseline data on the prevalence of test requests, their source and the yield of electrophoresis testing in our laboratory. An increasing trend in SIFE and UIFE was evident.
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    Folate stability study: stability of haemolysate prepared for red blood cell folate determination at various temperatures
    (2008) Zemlin, A. E.; Abrahams, N.; Essack, Y.; Rensburg, M. A.; Arnold, H.
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    The impact of COVID-19 on routine patient care from a laboratory perspective
    (Health & Medical Publishing Group, 2020-11-05) Kruger, E. C.; Banderker, R.; Erasmus, R. T.; Zemlin, A. E.
    Background. Globally, few studies have examined the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on routine patient care and follow-up. Objectives. To evaluate the effect of the COVID-19 response on biochemical test requests received from outpatient departments (OPDs) and peripheral clinics serviced by the National Health Laboratory Service Chemical Pathology Laboratory at Tygerberg Hospital, Cape Town, South Africa (SA). Request volumes were used as a measure of the routine care of patients, as clinical information was not readily available. Methods. A retrospective audit was conducted. The numbers of requests received from OPDs and peripheral clinics for creatinine, glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c), lipid profiles, thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), free thyroxine, free tri-iodothyronine (fT3), serum and urine protein electrophoresis, serum free light chains and neonatal total serum bilirubin were obtained from 1 March to 30 June for 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020. Results. The biggest impact was seen on lipids, creatinine, HbA1c, TSH and fT3. The percentage reduction between 1 March and 30 June 2019 and between 1 March and 30 June 2020 was 59% for lipids, 64% for creatinine and HbA1c, 80% for TSH and 81% for fT3. There was a noteworthy decrease in overall analyte testing from March to April 2020, coinciding with initiation of level 5 lockdown. Although an increase in testing was observed during June 2020, the number of requests was still lower than in June 2019. Conclusions. This study, focusing on the short-term consequences of the SA response to the COVID-19 pandemic, found that routine follow-up of patients with communicable and non-communicable diseases was affected. Future studies are necessary to evaluate the long-term consequences of the pandemic for these patient groups.
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    Vitamin D in clinical practice
    (Health & Medical Publishing Group, 2012-02) Zemlin, A. E.; Meyer, C.
    Vitamin D was first described in the 20th century when a cause for the high prevalence of rickets was sought. With the fortification of certain foods with vitamin D, the prevalence of rickets decreased and little attention was placed on vitamin D. However, in the past decade there has been a revived interest in vitamin D, as it is thought to be associated with various nonskeletal disorders. Research has found that the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency worldwide is actually much higher than thought, and this has led to a massive increase in the demand for laboratory testing of vitamin D levels.