FROM THE EDITOR By Christ ina Wichmann, Edi tor in Chief


MLO’s annual reference guide M


& MEDICAL LABORATORY OBSERVER Vol.55, No. 13


edical Laboratory Observer has published its annual reference guide, Clinical Laboratory Reference (CLR), since 1972. CLR provides a guide to tests, equip- ment, and services for the clinical lab market, in addition to tables of critical limits, reference intervals, and critical val- ues. It is the industry’s only complete resource guide. The CLR product guide includes company descrip- tions, their essential laboratory products, and contact information for ordering and pricing. This is a “Yellow Pages” service for our readers. Critical limits and reference intervals help laborato- rians interpret test results. Critical limits establish the upper and lower values that indicate when a patient’s


medical condition may be precarious, requiring the immediate attention of the provider who ordered the test. Reference intervals are the most common decision support tool for interpreting pathology reports, as patients’ test results are compared to these ranges to indicate normal results or those that may require clinical follow-up. These decision tools assist in one of the top goals in healthcare: timely communication.


Also in this issue, MLO editors pulled together summaries of some of


the biggest diagnostic updates from the U.S. Food and Drug Administra- tion and National Institutes of Health so far in 2023. One of these updates is deeper insight into long COVID — the post-infection set of conditions that can affect nearly every tissue and organ in the body. Researchers, funded by the National Institutes of Health, have identifi ed more than 200 symptoms associated with long COVID. Clinical symptoms vary but include fatigue, brain fog, dizziness, loss of taste and smell, and they can last for months or years after a person has had COVID-19. The research team also found that long COVID was more common and severe in study participants infected before the 2021 Omicron variant. To date, more than 100 million Americans have been infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. It is estimated that about 10% of adults infected with the virus continue to experience and suffer from the many symptoms termed together as long COVID. As is the case every year, the editors at MLO would not have been


able to produce this year’s CLR issue without the help of experts such as the following: • Gerald J. Kost, MD, PhD, MS, FAACC, Emeritus Professor, University of California, Davis for the Table of Critical Limits.


• Sean Campbell, PhD, DABCC, FAACC, Director of Chemistry, Montefi ore Medical Center, Bronx, NY for the Table of Reference Intervals.


• Rajasri Chandra, MS, MBA for the Critical Values for Therapeutic Drug Values. We hope our readers fi nd this resource benefi cial. For the online version


of CLR, please visit www.clr-online.com. For comments or feedback on CLR, please feel free to reach out to me at cwichmann@mlo-online.com.


VP, Group Publisher Matthew Raynor mraynor@endeavorb2b.com Editor in Chief Christina Wichmann cwichmann@mlo-online.com Managing Editor Erin Brady


ebrady@endeavorb2b.com Production Manager Edward Bartlett ebartlett@endeavorb2b.com Art Director Patti Connors pconnors@endeavorb2b.com Audience Development/List Rentals Laura Moulton lmoulton@endeavorb2b.com Advertising Services Manager Karen Runion krunion@endeavorb2b.com


ADVERTISING Director of Sales East Coast/Midwest Sales, Classifi eds Carol Vovcsko (941) 321-2873 cvovcsko@mlo-online.com South/West Coast/Illinois Sales Lora Harrell (941) 328-3707 lharrell@mlo-online.com


MLO EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD John Brunstein, PhD, Biochemistry (Molecular Virology) President & CSO PathoID, Inc., British Columbia, Canada Lisa-Jean Clifford COO & Chief Strategy Offi cer Gestalt, Spokane, WA Barbara Strain, MA, SM(ASCP), CVAHP Principal, Barbara Strain Consulting LLC Formerly Director, Value Management University of Virginia Health System, Charlottesville, VA Jeffrey D. Klausner, MD, MPH Professor of Preventive Medicine in the Division of Dis- ease Prevention, Policy and Global Health, Department of Preventive Medicine at University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine. Donna Beasley, DLM(ASCP) Director


Huron Healthcare, Chicago, IL Anthony Kurec, MS, H(ASCP)DLM Clinical Associate Professor, Emeritus SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY Suzanne Butch, MLS(ASCP)CM


, SBBCM


, DLMCM


Freelance Consultant, Avon, OH Paul R. Eden, Jr., MT(ASCP), PhD Lt. Col., USAF (ret.) (formerly) Chief, Laboratory Services 88th Diagnostics/Therapeutics Squadron Wright-Patterson AFB, OH Daniel J. Scungio, MT (ASCP), SLS, CQA (ASQ) Consultant at Dan the Lab Safety Man and Safety Offi cer at Sentara Healthcare, Norfolk, VA


CORPORATE TEAM


CEO Chris Ferrell CFO Mark Zadell


President June Griffi n COO Patrick Rains


CRO Reggie Lawrence Chief Digital Offi cer Jacquie Niemiec


Chief Administrative and Legal Offi cer Tracy Kane Amy Mularski, EVP City Services & Healthcare


22477 Stickney Point Rd., Suite 221B Sarasota, FL 34231 Phone: (941) 388-7050 Fax: (941) 388-7490 www.mlo-online.com


2 CLR 2023-2024 • MLO • www.clr-online.com


Medical Laboratory Observer USPS Permit 60930, ISSN 0580-7247 print, ISSN 2771-6759 online is published 12 times annually (Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Aug CLR, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec), with an additional issue in August, by Endeavor Business Media, LLC. 1233 Janesville Ave., Fort Atkinson, WI 53538. Periodical postage paid at Fort Atkinson, WI, and additional mailing offi ces. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Medical Laboratory Observer, PO Box 3257, Northbrook, IL 60065-3257. SUBSCRIPTIONS: Publisher reserves the right to reject non-qualifi ed subscriptions. Subscription prices: U.S. $160.00 per year; Canada/Mexico $193.75 per year; All other countries $276.25 per year. All subscriptions are payable in U.S. funds. Send subscription inquiries to Medical Laboratory Observer, PO Box 3257, Northbrook, IL 60065-3257. Customer service can be reached toll-free at 877-382-9187 or at MLO@omeda.com for magazine subscription assistance or questions. Printed in the USA. Copyright 2023 Endeavor Business Media, LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopies, recordings, or any information storage or retrieval system without permission from the publisher. Endeavor Business Media, LLC does not assume and hereby disclaims any liability to any person or company for any loss or damage caused by errors or omissions in the material herein, regardless of whether such errors result from negligence, accident, or any other cause whatsoever. The views and opinions in the articles herein are not to be taken as offi cial expressions of the publishers, unless so stated. The publishers do not warrant either expressly or by implication, the factual accuracy of the articles herein, nor do they so warrant any views or opinions by the authors of said articles.


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