When blood is drawn into a light blue tube, the sodium citrate immediately mixes with the blood, preventing the blood from clotting. This is important because coagulation testing requires a liquid, non-clotted blood sample. If the blood were to clot, it would be unsuitable for coagulation testing, and the results would be inaccurate.
The anticoagulant in the Light Blue Tube Phlebotomy works by binding to calcium ions in the blood. Calcium is an essential component in the clotting process, and by binding to calcium, the sodium citrate prevents the blood from clotting. Specifically, sodium citrate works by binding to the calcium ions, which then prevents the calcium ions from binding to other clotting factors, such as fibrinogen, that are necessary for the blood to clot.
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