Palm-Sized Analyzer Checks Blood On-Site

A palm sized professional blood tester measures cholesterol, glucose, creatinine, and triglycerides, all within several minutes at the physician's office.

The CardioChek PA point of care test (POCT) system is hand-held, battery-operated, software-driven reflectance spectrophotometer. The analyzer is equipped with a metabolic chemistry panel, which checks three of the main indicators for metabolic syndrome - triglycerides, glucose, and HDL cholesterol. A precise volume of whole blood is dispensed on to the application window of a test strip. Red cells and other non-plasma components are removed from the plasma, which then reacts in a controlled manner with a series of chemically impregnated membranes, ultimately producing a color change in the final membrane layer. The analyzer measures the color intensity from the color spectral profile and compares to lot-specific calibration information to calculate an accurate result. The analyzer then displays the result, simultaneously triggers a printout (if the dedicated printer is attached), and stores the test information in memory for later recall.

The CardioChek PA is a product of Polymer Tech Systems (PTS, Indianapolis, IN, USA). The PTS Panels test strips are composed of several layers of reagent-impregnated membranes sandwiched together in a plastic carrier; each membrane layer performs specific functions to process and facilitate chemical reactions. A memory (MEMo) chip, individually calibrated for each lot of PTS test strips, contains calibration settings, expiration dating, and other information that calibrates the CardioChek PA analyzer to every strip it reads.


Related Links:
Polymer Tech Systems