Start with traceability
Confirm that the document identifies the material, sample or lot, testing date, and issuing organization. The identifiers should correspond to the material being reviewed; a report for a different lot cannot establish the characteristics of the lot in hand.
- Product or sample name
- Lot, batch, or sample identifier
- Report and testing dates
- Issuing laboratory or organization
Identify the analytical methods
A result has meaning only in the context of the method used. Chromatographic methods may characterize a sample's component profile, while mass spectrometry may provide evidence about molecular mass. Neither method, by itself, answers every quality question.
- Look for the named method and result units.
- Check whether acceptance criteria are stated.
- Do not treat purity and identity as interchangeable.
Read results in context
Review qualifiers, notes, detection limits, and any stated uncertainty. A prominently displayed number may summarize one measurement but does not necessarily address concentration, sterility, endotoxin, residual solvents, or stability unless those attributes were separately tested and reported.
Recognize what a COA cannot prove
A COA is documentation for a defined sample and set of tests. It does not establish outcomes outside those tests, and it should not be used to infer medical suitability, approval status, or unreported quality attributes.