Test Catalog

Test Id : BILIT

Order This Test

Bilirubin, Total, Serum

Download
Overview

Test Catalog

Useful For
Suggests clinical disorders or settings where the test may be helpful

Assessing liver function

 

Evaluating a wide range of diseases affecting the production, uptake, storage, metabolism, or excretion of bilirubin

 

Monitoring the efficacy of neonatal phototherapy

Method Name
A short description of the method used to perform the test

Photometric, Diazonium Salt

NY State Available
Indicates the status of NY State approval and if the test is orderable for NY State clients.

Yes

Reporting Name
Lists a shorter or abbreviated version of the Published Name for a test

Bilirubin Total, S

Aliases
Lists additional common names for a test, as an aid in searching

Total Bilirubin, Serum

Specimen Type
Describes the specimen type validated for testing

Serum

Shipping Instructions

Ship specimen in amber vial to protect from light.

Necessary Information

Patient's age and sex are required.

Specimen Required
Defines the optimal specimen required to perform the test and the preferred volume to complete testing

Supplies: Amber Frosted Tube, 5 mL (T915)

Collection Container/Tube:

Preferred: Serum gel

Acceptable: Red top

Submission Container/Tube: Amber vial

Specimen Volume: 0.5 mL

Collection Instructions:

1. Serum gel tubes should be centrifuged within 2 hours of collection.

2. Red-top tubes should be centrifuged, and the serum aliquoted into an amber vial within 2 hours of collection.

Specimen Minimum Volume
Defines the amount of sample necessary to provide a clinically relevant result as determined by the Testing Laboratory

0.25 mL

Reject Due To
Identifies specimen types and conditions that may cause the specimen to be rejected

Gross hemolysis Reject

Specimen Stability Information
Provides a description of the temperatures required to transport a specimen to the performing laboratory, alternate acceptable temperatures are also included

Specimen Type Temperature Time Special Container
Serum Refrigerated (preferred) 7 days LIGHT PROTECTED
Frozen 30 days LIGHT PROTECTED
Ambient 24 hours LIGHT PROTECTED

Useful For
Suggests clinical disorders or settings where the test may be helpful

Assessing liver function

 

Evaluating a wide range of diseases affecting the production, uptake, storage, metabolism, or excretion of bilirubin

 

Monitoring the efficacy of neonatal phototherapy

Clinical Information
Discusses physiology, pathophysiology, and general clinical aspects, as they relate to a laboratory test

Bilirubin is one of the most frequently used tests to assess liver function. Approximately 85% of the total bilirubin produced is derived from the heme moiety of hemoglobin, while the remaining 15% is produced from the red blood cell precursors destroyed in the bone marrow and from the catabolism of other heme-containing proteins. After production in peripheral tissues, bilirubin is rapidly taken up by hepatocytes where it is conjugated with glucuronic acid to produce mono- and diglucuronide, which are excreted in the bile.

 

A number of inherited and acquired diseases affect 1 or more of the steps involved in the production, uptake, storage, metabolism, and excretion of bilirubin. Bilirubinemia is a frequent and direct result of these disturbances.

 

Jaundice can occur as a result of problems at each step in the metabolic pathway. Disorders may be classified as those due to increased bilirubin production (eg, hemolysis and ineffective erythropoiesis), decreased bilirubin excretion (eg, obstruction and hepatitis), and abnormal bilirubin metabolism (eg, hereditary and neonatal jaundice).

 

The most commonly occurring form of unconjugated hyperbilirubinemia is that seen in newborns and referred to as physiological jaundice. Elevated unconjugated bilirubin in the neonatal period may result in brain damage (kernicterus). Treatment options are phototherapy and, if severe, exchange transfusion.

 

The rare genetic disorders, Crigler-Najjar syndromes type I and type II, are caused by a low or absent activity of bilirubin uridine 5'-diphospho-glucuronosyltransferase. In type I, the enzyme activity is totally absent, the excretion rate of bilirubin is greatly reduced, and the serum concentration of unconjugated bilirubin is greatly increased. Patients with this disease may die in infancy owing to the development of kernicterus.

 

The increased production of bilirubin, that accompanies the premature breakdown of erythrocytes and ineffective erythropoiesis, results in hyperbilirubinemia in the absence of any liver abnormality.

 

In hepatobiliary diseases of various causes, bilirubin uptake, storage, and excretion are impaired to varying degrees. Thus, both conjugated and unconjugated bilirubin is retained, and a wide range of abnormal serum concentrations of each form of bilirubin may be observed. Both conjugated and unconjugated bilirubin are increased in hepatitis, space-occupying lesions of the liver, and obstructive lesions such as carcinoma of the head of the pancreas, common bile duct, or ampulla of Vater.

Reference Values
Describes reference intervals and additional information for interpretation of test results. May include intervals based on age and sex when appropriate. Intervals are Mayo-derived, unless otherwise designated. If an interpretive report is provided, the reference value field will state this.

0-6 days: Refer to www.bilitool.org for information on age-specific (postnatal hour of life) serum bilirubin values.

7-14 days: 0.0-14.9 mg/dL

15 days to 17 years: 0.0-1.0 mg/dL

> or =18 years: 0.0-1.2 mg/dL

Interpretation
Provides information to assist in interpretation of the test results

The level of bilirubinemia that results in kernicterus in a given infant is unknown. While central nervous system damage is rare when total serum bilirubin (TSB) is less than 20 mg/dL, premature infants may be affected at lower levels. The decision to institute therapy is based on a number of factors including TSB, age, clinical history, physical examination and coexisting conditions. Phototherapy typically is discontinued when TSB level reaches 14 to 15 mg/dL.

 

Physiologic jaundice should resolve in 5 to 10 days in full-term infants and by 14 days in preterm infants.

 

In preterm infants, the risk of a handicap increases by 30% for each 2.9 mg/dL increase of maximal total bilirubin concentration.

 

When any portion of the biliary tree becomes blocked, bilirubin levels will increase.

Cautions
Discusses conditions that may cause diagnostic confusion, including improper specimen collection and handling, inappropriate test selection, and interfering substances

Specimens should be protected from light and analyzed as soon as possible.

 

Grossly hemolyzed specimens should be rejected because hemoglobin inhibits the diazo reaction and falsely decreased results may be seen.

 

Compounds that compete for binding sites on serum albumin contribute to lower serum bilirubin levels (eg, penicillin, sulfisoxazole, acetylsalicylic acid).

 

Results from certain multiple myeloma patient specimens may show a positive bias. Not all multiple myeloma patients show the bias, and the severity of the bias may vary between patients. In very rare cases, increased gamma globulin levels, in particular type IgM (Waldenstrom macroglobulinemia), may cause unreliable results.

Clinical Reference
Recommendations for in-depth reading of a clinical nature

1. Rifai N, Chiu RWK, Young I, Burnham CD, Wittwer CT, eds. Tietz Textbook of Laboratory Medicine. 7th ed. Elsevier; 2023

2. Scharschmidt BF, Blanckaert N, Farina FA, Kabra PM, Stafford BE, Weisiger RA. Measurement of serum bilirubin and its mono- and diconjugates: Applications to patients with hepatobiliary disease. Gut. 1982;23(8):643-649

3. Practice parameter: management of hyperbilirubinemia in the healthy term newborn. American Academy of Pediatrics. Provisional Committee for Quality Improvement and Subcommittee on Hyperbilirubinemia [published correction appears in Pediatrics 1995 Mar;95(3):458-61]. Pediatrics. 1994;94(4 Pt 1):558-565

Method Description
Describes how the test is performed and provides a method-specific reference

Total bilirubin, in the presence of a suitable solubilizing agent, is coupled with 3,5-dichlorophenyl diazonium in a strongly acidic medium. The color intensity of the red azo dye formed is directly proportional to the total bilirubin and can be determined photometrically.(Package insert: Bilirubin Total Gen. 3,09/2016. Roche Diagnostics, Indianapolis, IN)

PDF Report
Indicates whether the report includes an additional document with charts, images or other enriched information

No

Day(s) Performed
Outlines the days the test is performed. This field reflects the day that the sample must be in the testing laboratory to begin the testing process and includes any specimen preparation and processing time before the test is performed. Some tests are listed as continuously performed, which means that assays are performed multiple times during the day.

Monday through Sunday

Report Available
The interval of time (receipt of sample at Mayo Clinic Laboratories to results available) taking into account standard setup days and weekends. The first day is the time that it typically takes for a result to be available. The last day is the time it might take, accounting for any necessary repeated testing.

Same day/1 to 2 days

Specimen Retention Time
Outlines the length of time after testing that a specimen is kept in the laboratory before it is discarded

1 week

Performing Laboratory Location
Indicates the location of the laboratory that performs the test

Rochester

Fees
Several factors determine the fee charged to perform a test. Contact your U.S. or International Regional Manager for information about establishing a fee schedule or to learn more about resources to optimize test selection.

  • Authorized users can sign in to Test Prices for detailed fee information.
  • Clients without access to Test Prices can contact Customer Service 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
  • Prospective clients should contact their account representative. For assistance, contact Customer Service.

Test Classification
Provides information regarding the medical device classification for laboratory test kits and reagents. Tests may be classified as cleared or approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and used per manufacturer instructions, or as products that do not undergo full FDA review and approval, and are then labeled as an Analyte Specific Reagent (ASR) product.

This test has been cleared, approved, or is exempt by the US Food and Drug Administration and is used per manufacturer's instructions. Performance characteristics were verified by Mayo Clinic in a manner consistent with CLIA requirements.

CPT Code Information
Provides guidance in determining the appropriate Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) code(s) information for each test or profile. The listed CPT codes reflect Mayo Clinic Laboratories interpretation of CPT coding requirements. It is the responsibility of each laboratory to determine correct CPT codes to use for billing.

CPT codes are provided by the performing laboratory.

82247

LOINC® Information
Provides guidance in determining the Logical Observation Identifiers Names and Codes (LOINC) values for the order and results codes of this test. LOINC values are provided by the performing laboratory.

Test Id Test Order Name Order LOINC Value
BILIT Bilirubin Total, S 1975-2
Result Id Test Result Name Result LOINC Value
Applies only to results expressed in units of measure originally reported by the performing laboratory. These values do not apply to results that are converted to other units of measure.
BILIT Bilirubin Total, S 1975-2

Test Setup Resources

Setup Files
Test setup information contains test file definition details to support order and result interfacing between Mayo Clinic Laboratories and your Laboratory Information System.

Excel | PHP Pdf | CMS Pdf

Sample Reports
Normal and Abnormal sample reports are provided as references for report appearance.

Normal Reports | Abnormal Reports

SI Sample Reports
International System (SI) of Unit reports are provided for a limited number of tests. These reports are intended for international account use and are only available through MayoLINK accounts that have been defined to receive them.

SI Normal Reports | SI Abnormal Reports