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Testing PoliciesAnimal specimens are generally not acceptable for laboratory testing and will not be tested. Human Specimen Acceptability Requests for uncommon specimen type testing will be rejected, and the order cancelled, unless validation information is available.
Tests may be cancelled without charge while specimens are in transit. A nominal fee will be charged for cancellations after specimens have been accessioned but not yet assayed. For cancellation requests call Client Services.
Quest Diagnostics Nichols Institute establishes its own reference ranges for analytes whenever possible. Many of our pediatric ranges have been developed in conjunction with major healthcare institutions. For some procedures, it is necessary to use ranges suggested by the reagent manufacturer or reported in the literature.
After testing is completed, samples are kept refrigerated for 14 days and then discarded. Samples that must be retained for longer than 14 days are kept frozen. The retention times for all samples will vary and are based on such criteria as:
Appropriateness of testing is ultimately a technical decision and is made by the technical staff using test-specific criteria. Quest Diagnostics Nichols Institute’s Sample Storage Policy assures availability of adequate and reliable specimens. Please call customer service at your lab for more details.
Although test specific specimen requirements are provided in the alphabetical test listing, please refer to this section first. This section offers more extensive instructions for selected assays in Coagulation, Genetics, Infectious Disease, Oncology, and Toxicology. When necessary, there will be a reference from the Alphabetical Test Listing section to this section.
