title: Spectrophotometry for cerebrospinal fluid pigment analysis.
abstract: The use of spectrophotometry for the analysis of the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is reviewed. The clinically relevant CSF pigments--oxyhemoglobin and bilirubin--are introduced and discussed with regard to clinical differential diagnosis and potentially confounding variables (the four T's: traumatic tap, timing, total protein, and total bilirubin). The practical laboratory aspects of spectrophotometry and automated techniques are presented in the context of analytical and clinical specificity and sensitivity. The perceptual limitations of human color vision are highlighted and the use of visual assessment of the CSF is discouraged in light of recent evidence from a national audit in the United Kingdom. Finally, future perspectives including the need for longitudinal CSF profiling and routine spectrophotometric calibration are outlined.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroimmunology, Institute of Neurology, UCL, Queen Square, London, UK. a.petzold@ion.ucl.ac.uk
authors.forename: Axel
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Petzold
authors.forename: Lindsay T
authors.initials: LT
authors.lastname: Sharpe
authors.forename: Geoffrey
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Keir
mesh_terms: D001663:Bilirubin / Q000378:metabolism*; D002555:Cerebrospinal Fluid / Q000378:metabolism*; D003118:Color Perception / Q000502:physiology; D001330:Electronic Data Processing; D005189:False Positive Reactions; D006801:Humans; D010108:Oxyhemoglobins / Q000378:metabolism*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013053:Spectrophotometry / Q000379:methods*; D013345:Subarachnoid Hemorrhage / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid* / Q000175:diagnosis*
chemical_list: D010108:Oxyhemoglobins; D001663:Bilirubin