title: Spurious dyserythropoiesis.
abstract: We documented the occurrence and severity of dyserythropoiesis as an artifact of storage in bone marrow aspirates collected in EDTA. Bone marrow samples were obtained from 7 patients without myelodysplasia. Specimens were stored at room (20 degrees C-24 degrees C) or refrigerated (1 degrees C-6 degrees C) temperature and examined for dyserythropoiesis at 0, 1, 2, and 3 days. Initial specimens showed few dyserythropoietic abnormalities; nuclear aberrations occurred in 1.07%+/-0.06% (mean +/- SEM) of the erythroid population. At room temperature, dyserythropoietic changes increased significantly with each day of storage. Nuclear and cytoplasmic alterations occurred; the former are diagnostically more important in the diagnosis of myelodysplastic syndromes. Cytoplasmic changes were more extensive than nuclear abnormalities. The mean +/- SEM percentage of erythroblasts with cytoplasmic vacuoles increased with each day of storage: day 0, 1.1%+/-0.2%; day 1, 22.1%+/-1.8%; day 2, 29.4%+/-2.0%; day 3, 35.6%+/-1.9%. Nuclear shape changes increased to 6.21%+/-1.12%, 11.36%+/-1.12%, and 12.85%+/-1.20% on days 1, 2, and 3, respectively. After 1 day of storage, sufficient dysplastic changes occur to cause difficulty in the diagnosis of a myelodysplastic syndrome. Changes are inhibited significantly by refrigerated storage.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Rhode Island Hospital, Providence 02903, USA.
authors.forename: Li Juan
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Lewis
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Glasser
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D016477:Artifacts; D001707:Biopsy, Needle; D001854:Bone Marrow Cells / Q000473:pathology*; D003951:Diagnostic Errors; D004492:Edetic Acid; D004920:Erythropoiesis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009190:Myelodysplastic Syndromes / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology*; D013696:Temperature; D014021:Tissue Preservation
chemical_list: D004492:Edetic Acid