Blood sugar level given in terms of whole blood, but most laboratories now measure and report plasma or serum glucose levels. Because red blood cells (erythrocytes) have a higher concentration of protein (e.g., hemoglobin) than serum, serum has a higher water content and consequently more dissolved glucose than does whole blood. To convert from whole-blood glucose, multiplication by 1.14 has been shown to generally give the serum/plasma level To prevent contamination of the sample with intravenous fluids, particular care should be given to drawing blood samples from the arm opposite the one in which an intravenous line is inserted. Alternatively, blood can be
Blood plasma fractionation Blood plasma fractionation Blood plasma fractionation refers to the general processes of separating the various components of blood plasma, which in turn is a component of blood obtained through blood fractionation. Blood plasma is the liquid component of whole blood, and makes up approximately 55% of the total blood volume. It is composed primarily of water with small amounts of minerals, salts, ions, nutrients, and proteins in solution. In whole blood, red blood cells, leukocytes, and platelets are suspended within the plasma. Plasma contains a large variety of proteins including albumin, immunoglobulins, and clotting proteins such as fibrinogen. Albumin constitutes