Catecholamines, Urine, 24-Hour

Catecholamines, 24-Hour Urine

Alternate Test Name

Catecholamine Fractionation, Free, 24 Hour Urine

Epic Mnemonic
Sunquest Mnemonic

LAB373
UCATB

Category

Sendouts

Methodology

High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC)
Includes unconjugated epinephrine, norepinephrine, and dopamine

Test Performance Schedule

Monday - Saturday

Result Availability

2 - 4 days

Container

24-hour Urine Container, no preservative

Note: Additionof 50% acetic acid prior to start of collection is preferred but not required. Refrigeration during and after urine collection is an acceptable means of urine preservation.
• If adding preservative:
• Add 25 mL 50% acetic acid at start of collection
• Children under 5 years, add 15 mL 50% acetic acid

Volume

Pref. Vol.: 2.0 mL urine aliquot from well mixed 24-hour specimen
Min. Vol.: 1.5 mL urine aliquot from well mixed 24-hour specimen

When submitting a 24-hour specimen aliquot: Entire urine collection must be well mixed prior to pouring off aliquot. Total volume of 24-hour collection must be measured and clearly marked on aliquot label and on test requisition.

Collection Instructions

• To begin collection of timed specimen, have patient urinate, noting the date and exact time
• Discard this first portion of urine, but document date and time of voiding on the container label and test requisition as the "start" of the timed specimen
• Save all urine voided during the designated time period (usually 24 hours), including the portion voided at exact end of time period
• Document date and time of final voiding on the label and requisition as the "end" of the timed specimen
• Refrigerate during and after collection

Transportation Instructions

Refrigerated

Stability

• Room temperature: 7 days
• Refrigerated (preferred): 7 days
• Frozen: 14 days

Remarks

Patient Preparation:
Discontinue drugs that release or hinder metabolism of epinephrine, norepinephrine, or dopamine for at least 1 week before obtaining the specimen (seeCautions for details). If this is not possible for medical reasons, contact the laboratory to discuss whether a shorter drug-withdrawal period may be acceptable.

Test includes:
Norepinephrine
Epinephrine
Dopamine

CPT Codes

82384

Effective/Revised

11/20/2019