Were the four Oropouche Virus codes with an XXX specimen type created that way purposefully or would it be wise to request new LOINCs for IgM and IgG where our specimen type is Serum only?
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Hi Kim,
I am going to refer you to the LOINC user guide for the answer. ( Knowledge Base – LOINC)
Section: 2.5 System (sample) type (4th part)
We use XXX in the System to identify a material that is unknown or not specified — it could be solid or fluid, for example. XXX is also used in the System when the specimen or material is known but recorded elsewhere in the HL7/ASTM message. Yet, using XXX as a System can be problematic (see also Section 2.5.1 - Special issues related to XXX as a System below). XXX and Body fld are different in that Body fld represents a biologic fluid (other than serum, plasma, blood, urine, and cerebrospinal fluid, as stated above), whereas XXX can represent any material, biologic or nonbiologic, solid or fluid.
This is a bit of an implementation question. If you are sending the specimen information in another segment of your message, then it may be acceptable to use the XXX codes. If you are not able to send the specimen information elsewhere, then you may need to request more granular LOINC Codes.
@pdbanning , @pitk0006 please jump in and add to this response as I likely missed a nuance to consider.
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Thank you for replying. We do understand the use of XXX as we use those codes frequently for our tests that accept multiple specimens. This particular test only accepts serum: Oropouche virus Antibody IgM. I was just curious if Regenstrief created all 4 Oropouche LOINCs with XXX to cover all specimen types instead of creating separate terms, but it sounds like I might need to request a code for serum only. Unsure if Serum will be sent in the outbound message but it is included in speciment requirments.
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