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After storage of whole blood at either 4 or 20 degrees C, results for glycosylated hemoglobin by ion-exchange chromatography ("high-performance" liquid and mini-column chromatography), thiobarbituric acid colorimetry, and affinity chromatography were compared. At 4 degrees C, all methods gave acceptable results for samples stored for as long as a week. At 20 degrees C, the colorimetric and affinity methods also showed sample stability for a week or more. The ion-exchange methods were associated with a marked increase in values for glycosylated hemoglobin after a few days of storage. Evidently, care in details of sample collection and handling is especially important for ion-exchange methods, and the colorimetric and affinity methods have advantages over ion exchange in situations where long delays between sample collection and assay are unavoidable.
Little et al. (Wed,) studied this question.