Fecal Fat, Stool (Referred Out ) - Saskatoon

Discipline

Biochemistry

Overview

Description

Patient preparation Instruction

For 3-5 days prior to and during the collection period:

Patient should be on a fat-controlled diet (100-150 g fat per day)
No laxatives (particularly mineral oil and castor oil)
No synthetic fat substitutes (e.g., Olestra) or fat-blocking nutritional supplements
Avoid medications that interfere fat absorption during the collection
- The use of diaper rash ointments will falsely elevate test results. Discontinue use during collection period.
- Barium interferes with this test procedure; a waiting period of 48 hours before stool collection analysis is recommended.

Test ordering requirements

Forms required

Requisitions must have specific test indicated
Miscellaneous Specimen Requisition Form #101878 or SHR Laboratory Medicine Community Laboratory Requisition Form #101064 or Acute Care Phlebotomy Requisition Form #101062

Alias

Stool, Fat
Fecal Fat, Quantitative
Lipids, Stool

Specimen Information

Specimen types accepted

Feces - 72, 48, 24 or random collection

Specimen collection container

Preferred collection container: Fecal Fat Collection Kit

Collection procedure

See Patient Collection Instructions for Fecal Fat Testing
Length of collection period is required
Bring specimen to the lab as soon as collection is completed or within 24 hours

Required volume

Optimal volume: Entire 24, 48, or 72 hour collection
Minimum volume: The entire collection must contain at least 5 grams of feces. For a random collection, a minimum of 5 grams is required (do not send the entire collection)

(Submitting the minimum volume makes it impossible to repeat the test or perform confirmatory/reflex testing. In some situations, a minimum volume may require a second collection. Chemistry may be able to do up to 10 tests with 0.75 mL blood.)

Transport and stability

Refrigerated: 180 days
Frozen: 180 days (preferred)

Rejection criteria

Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Acceptance and Rejection Criteria

Performance

Methodology

Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) Spectroscopy

Days/times performed

Availability	Shipped weekly
Testing site	Referred out by St. Paul's Hospital Laboratory Mayo Medical Laboratories (Rochester, MN)

Maximum laboratory time

3 day turnaround time by referral laboratory

Other information

Additional comments

Diagnosing fat malabsorption due to pancreatic or intestinal disorders
Monitoring effectiveness of enzyme supplementation in certain malabsorption disorders
Reference ranges have not been established for patients who are <18 years of age

Last Updated: October 9, 2024