A visibly hemolyzed serum specimen produces a potassium result much higher than the patient's previous values. What is the best laboratory interpretation?
1The result proves renal failure with acute tubular necrosis, often seen after crush injuries, and requires immediate dialysis
2Hemolysis lowers potassium because red cells contain none of this ion, so the reading is falsely low and needs no repeat
3The specimen should always be diluted and reported with a correction factor to account for hemolysis, as this is standard practice
4In vitro red cell rupture may falsely increase potassium, so recollection and correlation are appropriate✓ 정답
해설
Red cells contain substantially more potassium than plasma. In vitro hemolysis can release intracellular potassium and cause pseudohyperkalemia; specimen recollection is appropriate when the result is inconsistent with the clinical context.