Elemental Testing Using Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry in Clinical Laboratories

Objectives: This review aims to describe the principles underlying different types of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), and major technical advancements that reduce spectral interferences, as well as their suitability and wide applications in clinical laboratories.

Methods: A literature survey was performed to review the technical aspects of ICP-MS, ICP-MS/MS, high-resolution ICP-MS, and their applications in disease diagnosis and monitoring.

Results: Compared to the atomic absorption spectrometry and ICP-optical emission spectrometry, ICP-MS has advantages including improved precision, sensitivity and accuracy, wide linear dynamic range, multielement measurement capability, and ability to perform isotopic analysis. Technical advancements, such as collision/reaction cells, triple quadrupole ICP-MS, and sector-field ICP-MS, have been introduced to improve resolving power and reduce interferences. Cases are discussed that highlight the clinical applications of ICP-MS including determination of toxic elements, quantification of nutritional elements, monitoring elemental deficiency in metabolic disease, and multielement analysis.

Conclusions: This review provides insight on the strategies of elemental analysis in clinical laboratories and demonstrates current and emerging clinical applications of ICP-MS.