Scheme Information Sheets
UK NEQAS for Lipid Investigations
| Scheme Particulars | Indicative Details |
|---|---|
| Accreditation body | UKAS |
| ISO/IEC Accreditation status | ISO/IEC 17043:2023 |
| UKAS Accredited Proficiency Testing Provider No | 7860 |
| Objective of Scheme | Provides EQA coverage for a wide range of lipid parameters, including a separate specimen for Lipoprotein (a). The separate specimen allows endogenous material, from a single donor, to be distributed for Lipoprotein (a) |
| Pre-, Analytical, Post- status | Analytical |
| Number of distributions per year (nominal) | 11 |
| Specimens per distribution | 3 (Separate specimens for Lp(a)) |
| Number of Specimens per annum | 33 |
| Frequency of distribution | Monthly |
| Scoring system | ABC |
| Material distributed | Pooled, liquid human serum with or without exogenous added analyte |
| Programme Director(s) / Organiser(s) | Finlay MacKenzie |
| Criteria for participation | All, but overseas by courier |
| Nominal sample volume (mL) | 0.5 |
| Sample presentation TACs | Lipoprotein (a) is in a separate tube to the other Lipid analytes |
| Data in Chemistry on-line Dashboard | Yes |
| Analyte | Approx Range | Default Units | Target Value | B Score Limit (%) | C Score Limit (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apo A1 | 0.4 – 4 | g/L | ALTM | 7.5 | 10.0 |
| Apo B | 0.2 – 2 | g/L | ALTM | 7.5 | 10.0 |
| HDL cholesterol | 0.4 – 4 | mmol/L | MLTM | 10.0 | 10.0 |
| Homocysteine | 10 – 50 | µmol/L | ALTM | 10.0 | 15.0 |
| LDL cholesterol | 1 – 5 | mmol/L | MLTM | 10.0 | 10.0 |
| * Lp(a) | 30 – 500 | nmol/L | ALTM | 50.0 | 40.0 |
| non-HDL cholesterol | 1 – 7 | mmol/L | MLTM | 10.0 | 10.0 |
| Total cholesterol | 2 – 10 | mmol/L | MLTM | 5.0 | 5.0 |
| Triglyceride | 0.5 – 10 | mmol/L | MLTM | 5.0 | 7.5 |
| VLDL cholesterol | 0 – 2 | mmol/L | MLTM | 10.0 | 10.0 |
* For Lp(a) a restricted ALTM is used as the Target Value which means that results are compared against the ALTM for the unit that they are reported in
| Abbreviation | Expansion |
|---|---|
| ALTM | All Laboratory Trimmed Mean |
| GLTM | Group Laboratory Trimmed Mean – which is the Method Principle Mean |
| MLTM | Method Laboratory Trimmed Mean – usually a manufacturer system / analyser mean |
| XALTM | An external value that may be from a Reference Method System |
| OGLTM | A Method Principle Mean used as the target for all laboratories |
| OMLTM | A specific Method Mean used as a target for all laboratories |
| OMMED | A Method Median used as the target for all laboratories |
| MED | Median |
