Home Medicine The Italian External Quality Assessment (EQA) program on urinary sediment by microscopy examination: a 20 years journey
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The Italian External Quality Assessment (EQA) program on urinary sediment by microscopy examination: a 20 years journey

  • Sandra Secchiero EMAIL logo , Giovanni B. Fogazzi , Fabio Manoni , MariaGrazia Epifani and Mario Plebani ORCID logo
Published/Copyright: December 4, 2020
Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine (CCLM)
From the journal Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine (CCLM) Volume 59 Issue 5

Abstract

Objectives

In spite of the introduction of automated systems for urinary sediment analysis, microscopy examination remains the gold standard, and it is more than ever important to perform it with a good and reliable quality. External Quality Assessment (EQA) programs on urinary sediment are rare. The present paper provides an analysis of results from 2001 to date of the EQA Italian program which involves today 230 laboratories.

Methods

The program includes four surveys per year. Participants are asked the identification and clinical associations of urinary sediment particles, shown as phase contrast microscopy images in the website of the Center of Biomedical Research (CRB) (2 surveys), and the diagnosis of clinical cases presented by both images and a short clinical history (2 surveys). The results of each survey are then scored and commented. In 20 years, 298 images were presented: 90 cells (9 types), 23 lipids (5 types), 87 casts (21 types), 53 crystals (14 types), 22 microorganisms (5 types), and 23 contaminants (9 types). Moreover, 27 clinical cases, covering a wide spectrum of conditions with different degrees of complexity, were presented to participants.

Results

Identification: among urinary particle categories, the correct identification rate (obtained for each particle from the sum of correct + partially correct answers) was very high for micro-organisms (mean ± SD: 96.2 ± 3.5%), high for lipids (88.0 ± 11.8%) and crystals (87.0 ± 16.5%) followed, in decreasing order, by cells (82.1 ± 15.9%), casts (81.8 ± 14.8%), and contaminants (76.7 ± 22.1%). Clinical associations (n=67): the rate of correct answers was 93.5 ± 5.7% ranging from 75.0 to 100% for all but one clinical association (i.e., acute glomerulonephritis: 55.4%). Clinical cases: throughout surveys, due to the overall rate of particle misidentification, only 59.8 ± 17.1%, (range 32.5–88.7%) of participants achieved access to clinical diagnosis. Of these, 88.7 ± 10.6% (range 59.9–99.3%) were able to indicate the correct diagnosis.

Conclusions

Our program can be used as a tool to improve the identification of urine particles and the knowledge of their clinical meaning and to encourage specialists of laboratory medicine to correlate urinary findings with other laboratory data and the clinical history, an aspect that improves the value of the day by day work.

Keywords: external quality assessment programs; urinalysis; urinary sediment
Corresponding author: Sandra Secchiero, Centre of Biomedical Research for Quality in Laboratory Medicine c/o Department of Laboratory Medicine – University-Hospital, Via Giustiniani, 2 35128 Padova, Italy, Phone: +39-049-821-4490, Fax: +39-049-821-7916, E-mail:

  1. Research funding: None declared.

  2. Author contributions: All authors have accepted responsibility for the entire content of this manuscript and approved its submission.

  3. Competing interests: Authors state no conflict of interest.

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Received: 2020-11-04
Accepted: 2020-11-24
Published Online: 2020-12-04
Published in Print: 2021-04-27

© 2020 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Frontmatter
  2. Editorial
  3. Home pregnancy tests: quality first
  4. Review
  5. Non-invasive determination of uric acid in human saliva in the diagnosis of serious disorders
  6. Opinion Papers
  7. Basophil counting in hematology analyzers: time to discontinue?
  8. The role of laboratory hematology between technology and professionalism: the paradigm of basophil counting
  9. Recommendations for validation testing of home pregnancy tests (HPTs) in Europe
  10. General Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine
  11. The use of preanalytical quality indicators: a Turkish preliminary survey study
  12. The Italian External Quality Assessment (EQA) program on urinary sediment by microscopy examination: a 20 years journey
  13. Non-HDL-C/TG ratio indicates significant underestimation of calculated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) better than TG level: a study on the reliability of mathematical formulas used for LDL-C estimation
  14. Evaluation of the protein gap for detection of abnormal serum gammaglobulin level: an imperfect predictor
  15. Impact of routine S100B protein assay on CT scan use in children with mild traumatic brain injury
  16. Using machine learning to develop an autoverification system in a clinical biochemistry laboratory
  17. Effect of collection matrix, platelet depletion, and storage conditions on plasma extracellular vesicles and extracellular vesicle-associated miRNAs measurements
  18. Pneumatic tube transportation of urine samples
  19. Evaluation of the first immunosuppressive drug assay available on a fully automated LC-MS/MS-based clinical analyzer suggests a new era in laboratory medicine
  20. A validated LC-MS/MS method for the simultaneous quantification of the novel combination antibiotic, ceftolozane–tazobactam, in plasma (total and unbound), CSF, urine and renal replacement therapy effluent: application to pilot pharmacokinetic studies
  21. Immunosuppressant quantification in intravenous microdialysate – towards novel quasi-continuous therapeutic drug monitoring in transplanted patients
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  23. Reference intervals for venous blood gas measurement in adults
  24. Cardiovascular Diseases
  25. Detection and functional characterization of a novel MEF2A variation responsible for familial dilated cardiomyopathy
  26. Diabetes
  27. Evaluation of the ARKRAY HA-8190V instrument for HbA1c
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  29. An original multiplex method to assess five different SARS-CoV-2 antibodies
  30. Evaluation of dried blood spots as alternative sampling material for serological detection of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies using established ELISAs
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  32. The vasoactive peptide MR-pro-adrenomedullin in COVID-19 patients: an observational study
  33. Corrigenda
  34. Corrigendum to: Understanding and managing interferences in clinical laboratory assays: the role of laboratory professionals
  35. Corrigendum to: Age appropriate reference intervals for eight kidney function and injury markers in infants, children and adolescents
  36. Letters to the Editor
  37. A panhaemocytometric approach to COVID-19: a retrospective study on the importance of monocyte and neutrophil population data on Sysmex XN-series analysers
  38. Letter in reply to the letter to the editor of Harte JV and Mykytiv V with the title “A panhaemocytometric approach to COVID-19: a retrospective study on the importance of monocyte and neutrophil population data”
  39. SARS-CoV-2 serologic tests: do not forget the good laboratory practice
  40. Long-term kinetics of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in a cohort of 197 hospitalized and non-hospitalized COVID-19 patients
  41. Self-sampling at home using volumetric absorptive microsampling: coupling analytical evaluation to volunteers’ perception in the context of a large scale study
  42. Vortex mixing to alleviate pseudothrombocytopenia in a blood specimen with platelet satellitism and platelet clumps
  43. Comparative evaluation of the fully automated HemosIL® AcuStar ADAMTS13 activity assay vs. ELISA: possible interference by autoantibodies different from anti ADAMTS-13
  44. Significant interference on specific point-of-care glucose measurements due to high dose of intravenous vitamin C therapy in critically ill patients
  45. As time goes by, on that you can rely … preservation of urine samples for morphological analysis of erythrocytes and casts
  46. Stability of control materials for α-thalassemia immunochromatographic strip test
  47. Reformulated Architect® cyclosporine CMIA assay: improved imprecision, worse comparability between methods
  48. Urine-to-plasma contamination mimicking acute kidney injury: small drops with major consequences
  49. Automated Mindray CL-1200i chemiluminescent assays of renin and aldosterone for the diagnosis of primary aldosteronism
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  51. Reply to Dr Hawkins regarding comparability of results for monitoring
https://doi.org/10.1515/cclm-2020-1656
Keywords for this article
external quality assessment programs; urinalysis; urinary sediment

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Frontmatter
  2. Editorial
  3. Home pregnancy tests: quality first
  4. Review
  5. Non-invasive determination of uric acid in human saliva in the diagnosis of serious disorders
  6. Opinion Papers
  7. Basophil counting in hematology analyzers: time to discontinue?
  8. The role of laboratory hematology between technology and professionalism: the paradigm of basophil counting
  9. Recommendations for validation testing of home pregnancy tests (HPTs) in Europe
  10. General Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine
  11. The use of preanalytical quality indicators: a Turkish preliminary survey study
  12. The Italian External Quality Assessment (EQA) program on urinary sediment by microscopy examination: a 20 years journey
  13. Non-HDL-C/TG ratio indicates significant underestimation of calculated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) better than TG level: a study on the reliability of mathematical formulas used for LDL-C estimation
  14. Evaluation of the protein gap for detection of abnormal serum gammaglobulin level: an imperfect predictor
  15. Impact of routine S100B protein assay on CT scan use in children with mild traumatic brain injury
  16. Using machine learning to develop an autoverification system in a clinical biochemistry laboratory
  17. Effect of collection matrix, platelet depletion, and storage conditions on plasma extracellular vesicles and extracellular vesicle-associated miRNAs measurements
  18. Pneumatic tube transportation of urine samples
  19. Evaluation of the first immunosuppressive drug assay available on a fully automated LC-MS/MS-based clinical analyzer suggests a new era in laboratory medicine
  20. A validated LC-MS/MS method for the simultaneous quantification of the novel combination antibiotic, ceftolozane–tazobactam, in plasma (total and unbound), CSF, urine and renal replacement therapy effluent: application to pilot pharmacokinetic studies
  21. Immunosuppressant quantification in intravenous microdialysate – towards novel quasi-continuous therapeutic drug monitoring in transplanted patients
  22. Reference Values and Biological Variations
  23. Reference intervals for venous blood gas measurement in adults
  24. Cardiovascular Diseases
  25. Detection and functional characterization of a novel MEF2A variation responsible for familial dilated cardiomyopathy
  26. Diabetes
  27. Evaluation of the ARKRAY HA-8190V instrument for HbA1c
  28. Infectious Diseases
  29. An original multiplex method to assess five different SARS-CoV-2 antibodies
  30. Evaluation of dried blood spots as alternative sampling material for serological detection of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies using established ELISAs
  31. Variability of cycle threshold values in an external quality assessment scheme for detection of the SARS-CoV-2 virus genome by RT-PCR
  32. The vasoactive peptide MR-pro-adrenomedullin in COVID-19 patients: an observational study
  33. Corrigenda
  34. Corrigendum to: Understanding and managing interferences in clinical laboratory assays: the role of laboratory professionals
  35. Corrigendum to: Age appropriate reference intervals for eight kidney function and injury markers in infants, children and adolescents
  36. Letters to the Editor
  37. A panhaemocytometric approach to COVID-19: a retrospective study on the importance of monocyte and neutrophil population data on Sysmex XN-series analysers
  38. Letter in reply to the letter to the editor of Harte JV and Mykytiv V with the title “A panhaemocytometric approach to COVID-19: a retrospective study on the importance of monocyte and neutrophil population data”
  39. SARS-CoV-2 serologic tests: do not forget the good laboratory practice
  40. Long-term kinetics of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in a cohort of 197 hospitalized and non-hospitalized COVID-19 patients
  41. Self-sampling at home using volumetric absorptive microsampling: coupling analytical evaluation to volunteers’ perception in the context of a large scale study
  42. Vortex mixing to alleviate pseudothrombocytopenia in a blood specimen with platelet satellitism and platelet clumps
  43. Comparative evaluation of the fully automated HemosIL® AcuStar ADAMTS13 activity assay vs. ELISA: possible interference by autoantibodies different from anti ADAMTS-13
  44. Significant interference on specific point-of-care glucose measurements due to high dose of intravenous vitamin C therapy in critically ill patients
  45. As time goes by, on that you can rely … preservation of urine samples for morphological analysis of erythrocytes and casts
  46. Stability of control materials for α-thalassemia immunochromatographic strip test
  47. Reformulated Architect® cyclosporine CMIA assay: improved imprecision, worse comparability between methods
  48. Urine-to-plasma contamination mimicking acute kidney injury: small drops with major consequences
  49. Automated Mindray CL-1200i chemiluminescent assays of renin and aldosterone for the diagnosis of primary aldosteronism
  50. Use of common reference intervals does not necessarily allow inter-method numerical result trending
  51. Reply to Dr Hawkins regarding comparability of results for monitoring
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