Which practice regarding preservation and chilling is recommended when required?

• A. Use only a non-sterile container
• B. Proper preservation and chilling if required
• C. Labeling replaces preservation
• D. Deliver to lab without preservation

Answer: (B)

Preserving the sample and keeping it chilled when required protects its integrity from collection to analysis. Proper preservation methods—such as appropriate chemical preservatives or refrigerating/freezing as specified—slow down changes that could alter the target analytes or promote contamination. This is essential for obtaining accurate lab results and valid decisions based on those results. The other options miss the key point: contamination risk or degradation if you skip preservation, and labeling alone does not substitute for preserving the sample; using a non-sterile container can introduce issues, and delivering without preservation can compromise the analysis.