Unexpected Color of a Blood Sample | Medicalalgorithms.com

A blood, serum or plasma sample may have an unexpected color either from an endogenous or exogenous compound.

Compound	Color Effect
bilirubin	yellow-green-brown
canthxanthine (in sun tan products)	orange-pink color
carbon monoxide	cherry-red color
carotenoids	orange
ceruloplasmin	blue to green
cyanide	cherry-red color
dyes used for sentinel node dissection	blue to green
ferrous compounds	brown
hemolysis	pinkish to red serum or plasma
lipid (hyperlipidemia, total parenteral nutrition)	white, milkish
methemoglobin (in methemoglobinemia)	brown to chocolate
methylene blue	blue
propofol	white

Color Effect	Compound
blue	methylene blue, ceruloplasmin, dyes used for sentinel node dissection
brown	ferrous compounds; methemoglobin, bilirubin
cherry-red	carbon monoxide, cyanide
green	ceruloplasmin, dyes used for sentinel node dissection, bilirubin
orange or orange pink	carotenoids, canthxanthine
pinkish	hemolysis
red	hemolysis
white	lipid, propofol, TPN
yellow	bilirubin

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