Easy question...I'm sure

Nurses General Nursing

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What is the difference between plasma and serum?

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Blood plasma, the yellow-colored liquid component of blood, in which blood cells are suspended

Blood serum is blood plasma without fibrinogen or the other clotting factors.

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Is blood serum yellow then? (Sorry...I don't know why I'm not getting this!)

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Humm, honestly, I don't know what color blood serum is. (I am sure I was taught, but being an LPN we don't deal with blood products much)

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Specializes in ER.
Is blood serum yellow then? (Sorry...I don't know why I'm not getting this!)

Yes, if you have the chance to see a tube of blood that does not have anti coagulant in it (look for a big red top tube), after it sits a while, it will separate into a thin yellow fluid that sits on top of the red clot.

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serum has not got the components necessary for clotting(fibrogens), unlike plasma. serum is the liquid part of the blood after coagulation.

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