Background: The beryllium lymphocyte proliferation test (BeLPT), has become the principal clinical test for detecting beryllium sensitization and chronic beryllium disease. Uninterpretable BeLPT results can occur in a small but significant proportion of tests from poor lymphocyte growth (PG) or over proliferation of lymphocytes (OP). The clinical and laboratory causes of uninterpretable results are not known.
Methods: BeLPT data from the US Department of Energy-supported Former Worker Screening Program were analyzed for a 10-year period. Drivers of uninterpretable BeLPTs were investigated using multivariable models and classification techniques.
Results: Three participant attributes were significantly associated with PG, while OP showed no significant associations. Serum lot for the lymphocyte growth medium accounted for 21% of the variation in PG and 16% in OP.
Conclusion: Serum lots influence the likelihood of having uninterpretable BeLPT. To better understand uninterpretable results and possibly reduce their occurrence, additional laboratory-related factors should be addressed.
Keywords: BeLPT; BeS; CBD; chronic beryllium disease; lymphocyte proliferation.
© 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.