Blood investigations taken at the ED were severely lipaemic and appeared strawberry pink. The high lipaemic index appeared to cause derangements in point-of-care tests (POCT). Laboratory tests also took up to three times the usual duration to return, and multiple parameters had to be rejected in view of the additional centrifugation required.
With this background, we, herein, report a peculiar case wherein a WB venous sample, drawn from a male blood donor, showed "strawberry milk-like appearance" following an acute exacerbation of type-II diabetes mellitus, which dramatically recovered, to normal straw. The authors hypothesize that that man's extremely high blood triglyceride levels were caused by a combination of insulin resistance, obesity, inappropriate diet and insufficiently treated diabetes. Normal Plasma Colors During Blood Collection When performing blood collection, phlebotomists should be aware of the various colors that plasma can exhibit.
The normal plasma colors that a phlebotomist should look for include: Straw. The presence of lipids can make the plasma appear cloudy and less translucent. Hyperbilirubinemia: Elevated levels of bilirubin, a yellow pigment produced during the breakdown of red blood cells, can tint plasma and other bodily fluids.
This can lead to the pinkish or yellowish hue observed in strawberry milkshake. Blood color in this subject looked like strawberry milk but dramatically changed to completely normal transparent after obtaining good glycemic control with insulin therapy. Donors who eat a fatty meal before donating blood are known to have an increased level of plasma triglyceride concentrations for several hours.
This may contribute to "milky-white" appearance of their plasma samples. We herein report the case of a blood donor who gave a history of the intake of a fatty meal, on the night prior to donation. This was affirmed by his serum lipid concentration.
Intake of a fatty meal before donating blood can lead to an increased level of plasma triglyceride concentration for several hours. This may cause either turbid and or "milky-white" appearance of their venous plasma samples. We, however, report a peculiar case about a male blood donor from India, whose plasma appeared to be "strawberry milky-white" in colour.
On inquiry, he gave a history of. Blood need not always be red. We report a case of a 3 month old boy whose blood was strawberry pink before centrifugation and white (profusely lipemic) after centrifugation.
The differential diagnosis was familial hypercholesterolemia or familial.