Point-of-care haemoglobin testing

Abstract

Introduction: The aims of the study were to compare the accuracy, sensitivity and specificity of two haemoglobin point-of-care testing (POCT) devices, STAT-Site MHgb and Diaspect Tm, and to assess patient acceptability of haemoglobin POCT. Methods: Seventy-two subjects were recruited from Cospicua Health Care Centre. Testing was implemented on patients who were undergoing a routine venous blood test and were suffering from chronic kidney disease (CKD) or diabetes, and on patients with no CKD or diabetes (control group). Testing involved finger pricking with a lancet and using the second and third drop of blood to generate a result using STAT-Site MHgb and Diaspect Tm, respectively. A questionnaire was given to the 72 subjects after testing. The test results generated by the POCT kits were compared to the standard laboratory results. Results: Sixty-one (85%) and 72 (100%) test results were generated with STAT-Site MHgb and Diaspect Tm, respectively. Compared to the laboratory results, 12/61 and 40/72 results were accurate (±1g/dL) with STAT-Site MHgb and Diaspect Tm respectively. The sensitivity was 1 for STAT-Site MHgb and 0.89 for Diaspect Tm, while the specificity was 0.16 for STAT-Site MHgb and 0.51 for Diaspect Tm. All 72 subjects tested stated that they would be willing to have this test performed if available from community pharmacies. Conclusion: The higher accuracy, the balance between sensitivity and specificity, and ease of use of Diaspect Tm render it a better haemoglobin POCT device compared to STAT-Site MHgb. POCT for haemoglobin may be offered from community pharmacies to support patient monitoring.