Collecting, Processing, and Shipment of Blood and Urine Samples

Appropriate sample collections and quality laboratory techniques are vital to ensure quality data, as results from the analysis of blood/urine/tissue samples are most often part of the primary or secondary outcome measures of a trial. This chapter describes the appropriate blood and urine sample collection, storage and shipment, principles of blood separation, the centrifugation process, plasma and serum sampling, and the consequences of preanalytical issues and nonadherence to protocol or laboratory manual.