UCSF Navigation Bar

UCSF Departments of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine Home Page

Lab Manual for Moffitt-Long and Mount Zion

Lab Manual for SFGH

Internal Resources

UCSF Departments of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Home Page

Click here for more information about laboratory operations and procedures

Lactate, plasma

Item Value
Approval req'd? No
Available Stat? Yes
Test code LACT
Test group lactate
Performed by Parnassus Chemistry
In House Availability Test available 24 hours per day 7 days per week
Method Enzymatic
Collection Instructions Deliver sample immediately to laboratory for processing.
Container type Gray top
Amount to Collect 1 mL blood
Sample type Fluoride / oxalate whole blood
Preferred volume 1 mL blood
Min. Volume 0.3 mL blood
UCSF Rejection Criteria Serum, collected in non-Gray top tube, or received > 60 minutes after collection
Processing notes Provide immediately to Chemistry who will centrifuge and assay sample.

If specimen is collected at Mt. Zion, centrifuge immediately. Aliquot and freeze the plasma (-20C) immediately and send to Moffitt/Long on next scheduled delivery run.
Units mmol/L
Normal range
Age Normal Range
0 - 2 months 1.0-3.5 mmol/L
3 months - 1 year 1.0-3.3 mmol/L
2 - 18 years 1.0-2.4 mmol/L
≥ 18 years 0.5-2.2 mmol/L


Adult reference range from Beckman's Lactate Information Sheet which references Tietz, N. W., Clinical Guide to Laboratory Tests, 3rd Edition, Philadelphia, PA (1995). Adult range verified by testing 24 laboratory staff (July 2011).

Pediatric reference ranges adopted from Soldin, Steven J. Pediatric Reference Intervals (method 3), 6th edition, 2007.
Critical value > 3.9 mmol/L
Synonyms Lactic acid
Stability Room temperature 2 hours.
Turn around times 1 hour
CPT coding 83605
LOINC code 2524-7
Last Updated 4/19/2012 3:05:23 PM
Entry Number 585
Lab Procedure Link Click here for Procedure

If you have additional questions regarding this test, please call: 415-353-1667

Search Our Test Menu

The University of California, San Francisco, CA 94143. ©1998-2012 The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.

Web Design by Dayspring Technologies, Inc.

UCSF home page UCSF home page About UCSF Search UCSF UCSF Medical Center