Evaluation of reference ranges for fatty acids in serum

Long chain fatty acid fractionation has become a valuable tool in the management of patients maintained on total parenteral nutrition. While many clinicians prefer to use absolute concentrations to monitor a patient's fatty acid status, reference ranges are not available. Previous reference range studies reported values in terms of percentages only and calculated ranges parametrically. However, due to the non‐Gaussian distributions of some serum fatty acids, it is necessary to calculate reference ranges non‐parametrically. Serum from blood donors (n = 130) were collected and analyzed for total fatty acids by gas‐liquid chromatography. Results for each of the fatty acids were calculated both as a concentration and as a percentage of the total fatty acids measured. © 1994 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.