Category
Transfusion/ Immunohaematology
Sub Category
Transfusion/ Immunohaematology
Synonyms/Aliases
Direct Antiglobulin Test.
Abbreviations
DCT, DAT
Type
Individual test.
2-4 Hrs
2-4 hours after receiving sample.
Method
Hemagglutination Test.
Temp
Room Temperature (24 Hours); Refrigerated, 2 - 8⁰c (3 Days).
Setup
All working days.
Components Parameters
N/A
Pre-analytic Considerations
N/A
Test Ordering Instructions
Fill out test request form fully & legibly.
Patient preparation
N/A
Sample type
EDTA whole blood.
Container/ preservative
EDTA (purple top) vacutainer.
Sample volume
2ML
Rejection criteria
Unlabeled/ Mislabeled Samples; Missing/ Wrong Request Form; Frozen Samples, Clotted Sample, Wrong Vacutainer Tube.
Other Instructions
Label sample with at least 2 patient identifiers e.g. Full name & date of birth.
Reference intervals
Negative.
Clinical Utility
Evaluation of autoimmune hemolytic Anemia, Hemolytic disease of the newborn.
Test Limitations/ Confounders
Presence of cold autoantibodies can affect interpretation of results, clotted sample can result to false positive results.