000358270_sm_Suppl._Material.pdf (570.91 kB)
Supplementary Material for: A Progress Report of the IFCC Committee for Standardization of Thyroid Function Tests
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posted on 2014-05-07, 00:00 authored by Thienpont L.M., Van Uytfanghe K., Van Houcke S., Das B., Faix J.D., MacKenzie F., Quinn F.A., Rottmann M., Van den Bruel A.Background: The IFCC Committee for Standardization of Thyroid Function Tests aims at equivalence of laboratory test results for free thyroxine (FT4) and thyrotropin (TSH). Objectives: This report describes the phase III method comparison study with clinical samples representing a broad spectrum of thyroid disease. The objective was to expand the feasibility work and explore the impact of standardization/harmonization in the clinically relevant concentration range. Methods: Two sets of serum samples (74 for FT4, 94 for TSH) were obtained in a clinical setting. Eight manufacturers participated in the study (with 13 FT4 and 14 TSH assays). Targets for FT4 were set by the international conventional reference measurement procedure of the IFCC; those for TSH were based on the all-procedure trimmed mean. The manufacturers recalibrated their assays against these targets. Results: All FT4 assays were negatively biased in the mid- to high concentration range, with a maximum interassay discrepancy of approximately 30%. However, in the low range, the maximum deviation was approximately 90%. For TSH, interassay comparability was reasonable in the mid-concentration range, but worse in the pathophysiological ranges. Recalibration was able to eliminate the interassay differences, so that the remaining dispersion of the data was nearly entirely due to within-assay random error components. The impact of recalibration on the numerical results was particularly high for FT4. Conclusions: Standardization and harmonization of FT4 and TSH measurements is feasible from a technical point of view. Because of the impact on the numerical values, the implementation needs careful preparation with the stakeholders.