lab error
Faulty test result
Lab error is a mistake made during laboratory testing that produces inaccurate or unreliable results.
Errors can occur at any stage—sample collection, handling, processing, or interpretation.
In medical contexts, lab error can lead to misdiagnosis or inappropriate treatment: The doctor ordered a retest, suspecting lab error.
The term often appears when someone questions unexpected findings.
- mistakeWrong action or decision
- contaminationIntroduction of impurities
- sampleSubset for study
- pipetteGraduated liquid transfer tube
- specimenIndividual for examination
calibration · measurement · glitch · oversight · blunder · false positive · misread · sterile · gloves · bench · reagent · protocol · experimental design · quality control · chain of custody · data · results · typo
- malpracticemalpractice, medical malpractice, legal malpractice, malpractice insurance, professional negligence
- diagnostic errorsmisdiagnosis, missed diagnosis, delayed diagnosis, false negative, false positive
- medical errorsmisdiagnosis, wrong dose, wrong medication, missed dose, missed diagnosis
- false positivesfalse alarm, misdiagnosis, overdiagnosis
lab errorbest practice
Accepted superior method
breakthrough · flawless execution · quality assurance · gold standard
lab, error, labs, laboratory, laboratories, errors, errant, erratic, erratically