Siemens RAPIDLAB 248, Operator'S Manual, Page: 80 / 135

‘Suspect Results’
Patient Results
‘Suspect results’ may be caused by a poorly maintained reference
sensor, for example, protein build up on the reference sensor
membrane, bubbles in the fill solution, or crystal growth. Under these
conditions aqueous solutions (for example, QC material) diffuse across
the reference sensor membrane at a different rate to non-aqueous
solutions (for example, patient samples), and therefore QC results may
not be affected. If the system reports patient results that are suspect
include the following troubleshooting steps:
Deproteinize the sample path.
Check for air bubbles in the reference sensor, and remove.
Check for crystals in the reference sensor, and remove.
If the problem still exists after these steps have been taken replace
the reference sensor cassette.
Reference Sensor
Crystals in the bottom of the sensor
Empty sensor cassette, remove crystals and refill using reference
sensor fill solution.
Leaking membrane
Replace sensor cassette.
See Page 3-19.
System
Correlation factors changed
Reset to correct factors, Page 5-3.
Calibrants used for longer than 30 days
Replace Buffer Pack.
Gas pressure/gas flow rate incorrect/leaks in gas system
Check pressure and flow rate/cure leak, Page 3-10.
Incorrect gas values entered
Enter correct values, Page 5-2.
Barometric pressure incorrect/changed
Enter correct barometric pressure, Page 2-9.
Sample creep caused by blockage (e.g. fibrin clot in sample path)
Clear blockage, Page 3-31.
Bubbles in sensor fill solution
Debubble sensors, Page 3-17 and 3-19.
Sample
Sample improperly collected or stored
Follow the instructions in Sample Handling and Storage, Section 1.
QC
Problem could be caused by: abnormal pH/interfering ions/wrong matrix/
wrong assigned values/use of other aqueous standards/improper handling
Use only recommended QC materials and follow the instructions in QC
Handling, Section 1. If problem persists, follow maintenance procedures.
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