Antinuclear Antibody (ANA)
Immunology
Sample and container requirements
Serum
Minimum volume required
1mL serum
Special requirements
None
Patient preparation
None
Sample viability
Turnaround time
5 days
Reference range
Results reported as negative, weak positive (1:50), or positive titre (1:100, 1:400, 1:1600, >1:1600)
Clinical guidance
Anti-nuclear antibodies are non-specific and may be associated with a variety of autoimmune (e.g. SLE, rheumatoid arthritis, scleroderma, Sjogren's, myositis) and non-autoimmune (e.g. chronic infection) conditions. They may be used as a preliminary investigation for connective tissue disease and autoimmune liver disease. In some cases other tests, such as anti-dsDNA, ENA, myositis or scleroderma antibodies may be cascaded to provide additional information. Please refer to LabTestsOnlineUK for more information: https://labtestsonline.org.uk/tests/antinuclear-antibody-ana-test
Notes
Images to go here
This information was last updated on 19 August 2026