Assessment of a serum separator device for obtaining serum specimens suitable for clinical analyses.

We have evaluated a serum separator device that is designed to effect better separation and isolation of serum from clotted blood. This device consists of an evacuated blood-drawing tube (Vacutainer) containing 1.5 ml of a semi-solid silicon polymer that forms a barrier between serum and clot during centrifugation. We compared test specimens with conventionally processed (Vacutainer) specimens as controls. Eighty-one chemical, toxicological, and immunological reactions, tests, or methods were studied. For several tests we observed changes that are statistically but not clinically significant. The one clinically significant change in serum chemistry values occurred in the case of lactate dehydrogenase, for which values were increased by 5-8% of the upper limit of normal.