If an error was made in preparing a commercial control, patients' results will be:

In the context of laboratory testing, a commercial control is a standardized sample used to verify that the testing processes are functioning correctly. If there is an error in preparing a commercial control, it typically impacts the reliability of that control as a reference, but it does not directly alter the results of patient samples that were processed independently.

The principle behind laboratory controls is that they help ensure the accuracy and reliability of tests. If the control itself is flawed, it could lead to misinterpretation of how well the tests are performing, potentially resulting in incorrect conclusions about the patient results. However, the actual outcomes of the patient tests are dependent on the test reagents, processes, and instrumentation used, rather than the control’s validity.

Thus, patient results remain unaffected because those results are based on individual sample analyses rather than the control's performance. In this scenario, the focus is on the potential for a misleading interpretation of test performance rather than a direct modification to the patient results themselves.