Hepatitis A – Genotyping-Subtyping
Consistent with O. Reg. 671/92 of the French Language Services Act, laboratory testing information on this page is only available in English because it is scientific or technical in nature and is for use only by qualified health care providers and not by members of the public.
Specimen Requirements
Test Requested | Required Requisition(s) | Specimen Type | Minimum Volume | Collection Kit |
Hepatitis A Genotyping |
Blood |
5.0 ml |
Blood, clotted - vacutainer tubes (SST) |
|
Hepatitis A Genotyping |
Plasma |
1.0 ml |
EDTA tubes |
Submission and Collection Notes
Instructions for using SST tubes are found in the document titled: LAB-SD-008, Blood Collection using Serum Separator Tubes
Referring laboratories must indicate on the requisition if the specimen has already been tested for HAV IgM and that the result is HAV IgM Positive.
Limitations
Haemolysed, icteric, lipemic or microbially contaminated sera or plasma are not recommended for testing.
Storage and Transport
Label the specimen container with the patient’s full name, date of collection and one other unique identifier such as the patient’s date of birth or Health Card Number. Failure to provide this information may result in rejection or testing delay.
Special Instructions
Centrifuge the SST/EDTA tube and transfer serum/plasma to a cryovial. Store serum/plasma specimen frozen at <-60°C following collection. Place specimen in a biohazard bag and seal. Ship to PHO laboratory frozen on dry ice or ice packs. Minimum specimen volume to the National Medical Microbiology Laboratory (NML) is 1.0 mL.
Test Frequency and Turnaround Time (TAT)
Hepatitis A – genotyping specimens are shipped to NML weekly.
Turnaround time is up to 21 days.
Hepatitis A – Genotyping Tests are referred to the Public Health Agency of Canada – National Microbiology Lab (NML), Molecular, Immunodiagnostics, Bloodborne Pathogens and Hepatitis Section:
Phone: (204) 789-6062
Fax: (204) 789-2082
Email: NMLBloodbornePathogens@phac-aspc.gc.ca
Hepatitis A Genotype testing is performed by conventional RT- Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) followed by sequencing.
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