URGENT Vasculitis (ANCA) Screen

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Testing Laboratory

Auckland Te Toka Tumai | Auckland Hospital

Department

Immunology

Delphic Registration Code (Alpha Code)

VASU

Test Code (Numeric Code)

7172

Laboratory Handling

Phlebotomy

Serum

Transport

Ambient (8 - 24°C) within 48 hours; Chilled (4 - 8°C) if longer than 48 hours

Registration

VASU

Test Adds Requirement

This assay is restricted and must be approved prior to the assay being performed.

Sample Stability

Up to 48 hours: 8 - 24°C; Up to 14 days: 4 - 8°C; Up to 6 months: -30°C; Indefinite at - 80°C

Associated Tests

Synonyms

Systemic Vasculitis
ANCA
Anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody
Anti-MPO
Anti-PR3

Turnaround Time

3.5 hours

From specimen arrival time to reporting

This test may be vetted by the laboratory. Please include relevant clinical information on the request form to ensure appropriate tests are approved. See the 'Clinical Information' section below for more information on the indications for testing.

Specimen Type

  • Serum

Specimen Requirements

Tube/Container Type:

Preferred
  • SST II (Gold Cap)
Acceptable
  • Plain (Red Top)
Preferred Sample Volume (ml)

3.5

Minimum Sample Volume (ml)

1

Paediatric Specimen Requirements

Tube/Container Type:

Preferred
  • SST II (Gold Cap)
Acceptable
  • Plain(Microtainer)
  • SST(Microtainer)
Minimum Sample Volume (ml)

1

Pre-testing Requirements

This assay is restricted and must be approved prior to testing.

Urgent vasculitis requests during normal working hours must be approved by either the Immunopathologist, Immunopathology registrar, or a senior member of the testing team in that order of preference. Any request that is not approved will be treated as routine. To ensure prioritised processing, notify the Section Leader (VIM - Serology) or their delegated authority on extension: 23006 / 22103 / 22105.

Urgent requests outside of normal working hours (ie. weekends, public holidays and 1700-0800 on weekdays) will only be performed once the Consultant of the requesting team has contacted the Immunopathologist and reached agreement that the test is required out-of-hours. Requests that do not fulfill these requirements will not be actioned.

If urgent testing falls outside 0800-1800 on Saturday or Sunday and the request has been approved by an Immunopathologist, send the specimen to Biochemistry, North Shore Hospital Laboratory marked as urgent for MPO and PR3 antibody testing.

Please note that anti-GBM testing is not part of the urgent ANCA vasculitis screen and needs to be specifically requested (please refer to the "Anti-GBM antibody" page on the test guide).

Additional Specimen Information

A photocopy of the form is to be sent with the specimen to the department.

Last updated: 13/05/2026