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Specimen Collection Manual and Test Catalog

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TOXOPLASMA GONDII DNA, QUALITATIVE REAL-TIME PCR

Geisinger Epic Procedure Code:  LAB1287    Geisinger Epic ID:  53073

SPECIMEN COLLECTION
Specimen type: 

Amniotic fluid, CSF, or tissue (preferred) OR serum, whole blood, plasma, amniotic fluid supernatant, or vitreous fluid


Preferred collection container: 
Alternate collection container: 
6 mL red-top (plain, non-serum separator) tube
3 mL lavender-top (K2 EDTA) tube
Specimen required: 

1 mL amniotic fluid, CSF, serum, whole blood, plasma, amniotic fluid supernatant (minimum 0.3 mL), 3 mm tissue or 0.2 mL vitreous fluid


Special notes: 

Raw vitreous fluid specimens: Do not dilute collected specimen with additional saline.



SPECIMEN PROCESSING
Processing instructions: 

Serum or plasma: Centrifuge and aliquot.


Transport temperature: 

Refrigerated (cold packs).


Specimen stability: 

Whole blood: Room temperature: 48 hours. Refrigerated: 7 days. Frozen: Unacceptable. 
All other specimens: Room temperature: 48 hours. Refrigerated: 7 days. Frozen: 30 days.


Rejection criteria: 

Hemolyzed whole blood



TEST DETAILS
Additional information: 

This test was developed and its analytical performance characteristics have been determined by Quest Diagnostics. It has not been cleared or approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. This assay has been validated pursuant to the CLIA regulations and is used for clinical purposes.


CPT code(s):  87798
Note: The billing party has sole responsibility for CPT coding.  Any questions regarding coding should be directed to the payer being billed.
The CPT codes provided by GML are based on AMA guidelines and are for informational purposes only.

Methodology: 
Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)
Synonyms: 

Quest test code 34451, Tgon-QL PCR


Clinical significance: 

Toxoplasma gondii, an obligate intracellular parasite, is an important opportunistic pathogen of immunosuppressed patients. In AIDS patients and transplant patients, this infection may result in a life-threatening encephalitis. T. gondii can also cause a fatal infection of the fetus if an infection is acquired during pregnancy. Fetal death or major abnormalities such as blindness and mental retardation may occur when infection is acquired during the first trimester. PCR methods may be useful in identifying T. gondii in CSF of immunosuppressed patients or in the amniotic fluid of mothers thought to be recently infected.


Review Date:  12/17/2024

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