Blood and lab tests
What Does Hemolyzed Sample Mean on a Blood Test?
Hemolyzed Sample · say it: HEE-moh-lized SAM-pulAlso written: hemolysis, haemolysed, hemolysed specimen, sample hemolyzed
Short answer
A hemolyzed sample is a blood sample in which red blood cells have burst, which can make some test results inaccurate.
What it means
Hemolysis means the breaking open of red blood cells. It most often happens in the tube after the blood is taken, for example if the needle is small, the blood is shaken, or the sample is delayed or stored at the wrong temperature.
When red cells burst, they release their contents into the liquid part of the blood. This can falsely raise results such as potassium, AST and LDH, and can interfere with other tests.
Labs often add a comment when a sample is hemolyzed and may not report some results. In most cases the answer is simply to take a new sample.
Where you may see it
- Lab comments on chemistry results
- Potassium and liver enzyme results
- Requests to repeat a blood test
📄 How it looks on a report
Sample hemolyzed. Potassium may be falsely elevated. Please repeat.
🙅 What it does not mean
- It usually does not mean something is wrong with your blood; it is most often a handling issue.
- A raised potassium in a hemolyzed sample may not reflect your true level.
- Needing a repeat test does not mean the first one showed a problem.
🗒️ Questions to ask your doctor
🧾 Reports where you will see “Hemolyzed Sample”
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💊 Medicines whose labels mention “Hemolyzed Sample”
Plain-English explanations of each medicine, from its official FDA label.
- Primaquine
An antimalarial medicine of the 8-aminoquinoline group, as described in the label
🔗 Read more from trusted sources
- “Hemolyzed Sample” on MedlinePlus ↗
US National Library of Medicine
- NCI Dictionary definition ↗
US National Cancer Institute: “hemolysis”
- MedlinePlus lab test guides ↗
US National Library of Medicine
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