Xanthochromia Information and Courses from MediaLab, Inc.
These are the MediaLab courses that cover Xanthochromia and links to relevant pages within the course.
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| Which of the following characteristics are considered abnormal? | View Page |
| True of false: to determine if xanthochromia is present, the sample must be centrifuged within one hour. | View Page |
| Xanthochromia Samples from patients who have suffered a subarachnoid hemorrhage or cerebral hemorrhage may have a pink- to yellow-tinged supernatant when the sample is centrifuged within one hour after collection.
The term used to describe the colored supernatant is xanthochromia. The color varies according to the substance causing the color and the length of time after the incident that the sample is examined.
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| An Example of Xanthochromia Two to four hours after a subarachnoid hemorrhage, the supernatant of a CSF sample will be pale pink to pale orange.
The source of this color is oxyhemoglobin from lysed red cells present in the CSF before the puncture. Xanthochromia from the lysed red cells reaches its peak 24 - 36 hours after the hemorrhage and gradually disappears after four to eight days.
In the same type of hemorrhage, after 12 hours yellow xanthochromia begins to appear due to the presence of bilirubin. The bilirubin is the breakdown product of oxyhemoglobin from the original lysed red cells.
The yellow color in the supernatant reaches its peak in about two to four days and disappears after two to four weeks. | View Page |
| Other Causes of Xanthochromia Examples of sources of pigment other than oxyhemoglobin and bilirubin that can cause xanthochromia include:
methemoglobinincreased CSF protein (> 150 mg/dL)contamination by skin antiseptic (iodine or merthiolate)
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| Causes of Xanthochromia in Premature Infants Xanthochromia may also be present in the cerebrospinal fluid of premature infants. Reasons for this include:
elevated bilirubin in the bloodimmaturity of the blood-brain barrierelevated protein in CSF
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| Important Aspects of Xanthochromia It is important to recognize that xanthochromia is the appearance of color in the supernatant of a fresh, centrifuged CSF sample.
There are a variety of causes for the appearance of this color. Therefore, it is important that xanthochromia be reported.
The physician is responsible for determining the reason for its presence. | View Page |
| Macroscopic abnormalities may include which of the following? | View Page |
| Xanthochromia in a premature infant may be due to an immature blood-brain barrier. | View Page |
| A yellow coloration found in fresh cerebrospinal fluid is termed: | View Page |
| Xanthochromia in CSF is characteristic of: | View Page |