Questionnaire survey results on the quality assurance of cardiovascular disease-related laboratory tests

Abstract

In 2018, the “Basic Plan for the Promotion of Cardiovascular Disease Measures” was formulated. The Japanese Association of Medical Technologists is considering an accuracy control survey for cardiovascular disease-related laboratory test items with the aim of expanding the accuracy control system for clinical laboratories in accordance with national policy. The Cardiovascular Disease-Related Laboratory Test Item Accuracy Control Survey Working Group has begun preparing samples for the accuracy control surveys and discussing a time schedule for conducting pre-surveys. In the process, a “Questionnaire Survey on Cardiovascular Disease-related Laboratory Test Item Accuracy Management” was conducted during the 2023 Japan Society of Clinical Hygiene Technologists Clinical Laboratory Accuracy Management Survey to ascertain the status of operation of cardiovascular disease-related laboratory test items at each medical institution. The questionnaire received responses from 1,811 institutions. As a result, 1,251 (88.4%) institutions, including institutions currently under consideration, willing to undergo an external accuracy control survey for cardiovascular disease-related laboratory test items. We also investigated whether reference intervals, pathology identification values, and panic values were set for each item, but the values differed greatly between institutions, and 36 (14.8%) institutions that set pathology identification values, even for items with a high setting rate. In addition, most of the institutions used recommended blood collection tubes for BNP measurement in the reagent package inserts, but some institutions used EDTA-2Na aprotinin-added blood collection tubes. The results of this survey revealed issues such as not only establish a system for accuracy control surveys, but also unifying units, setting reference intervals, and panic values.