At a glance
| Analyte | Direct (conjugated) bilirubin |
|---|---|
| Also called | BIL-D, DB, Conjugated bilirubin, B2 |
| Method | Diazo colorimetric |
| Sample type | Serum, Plasma |
| Panel | Hepatic |
| Discipline | Clinical chemistry |
| Brand | Mindray |
What Direct Bilirubin measures
Direct bilirubin is the fraction the liver has already conjugated and made water-soluble, ready for excretion into bile. Measuring it separately splits a raised total into two very different clinical pictures. When most of the excess is unconjugated, the liver has not yet processed it, which points upstream toward increased red cell breakdown or an inherited conjugation defect. When most of it is conjugated, the liver did its work and the pigment is not getting away, which points downstream toward obstruction or cholestasis. The laboratory measures the total and the direct fraction and reports the indirect fraction as the difference, so this reagent is what makes the third number possible.
How Philippine laboratories run it
Always ordered with total bilirubin in the Philippine liver panel, never alone, so the two are supplied on the same schedule and in step. The distinction the direct fraction provides is the reason clinicians request the pair rather than a single bilirubin: separating obstructive from haemolytic causes changes what happens next for the patient. Laboratories serving hospitals with a nursery see the same stat pattern here as with total bilirubin, and should hold cover for it. Because the indirect fraction is calculated, there is no third reagent to order.
Analyzers it runs on
Calibrator, controls and companion tests
Delivered with its calibrator, both control levels and the rest of the hepatic panel, on the same schedule as Direct Bilirubin.
Storage and handling
Refrigerated and protected from light.
Buying Direct Bilirubin in the Philippines
Direct Bilirubin is supplied for the BS-600M, BS-430, BS-360E, BS-240Pro, BS-230 and BA-88A. We deliver it with Multi-Sera Calibrator and Chemistry Control Level 1, because a run held up waiting on a separate order costs the same shift a stock-out does. Delivery is scheduled against your monthly Direct Bilirubin count, so the bench is not rationing tests in the last week of the month. How we plan clinical chemistry supply.
Questions about Direct Bilirubin
Do we need a separate reagent for indirect bilirubin?
No. Indirect, or unconjugated, bilirubin is calculated by subtracting the measured direct fraction from the measured total, so two reagents produce three reported values. That is also why the two must be ordered together: without either one, the laboratory loses the split that makes the result clinically useful and is left with a single number that says only that bilirubin is raised.
Order Direct Bilirubin
Tell us your monthly Direct Bilirubin volume and we will quote a supply schedule for BS-600M. We reply within one business day.
Request a quotation