"Aged sample" software on automated routine hematology analyzer enables differentiation between pathological and...

Area of Science:

• Clinical Hematology
• Laboratory Automation
• Diagnostic Technology

Background:

• Blood sample storage at room temperature or suboptimal cooling causes reproducible red blood cell swelling.
• These morphological changes can lead to inaccurate flagging in automated complete blood counts (CBC) and white blood cell (WBC) differentials.
• Current methods may misinterpret sample aging as pathological conditions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the automated detection of morphological changes in aged blood samples.
• To determine if software can prevent false positive flagging on hematology analyzers.
• To assess the impact of an "Aged sample" software on routine laboratory diagnostics.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of 150 blood samples aged under controlled conditions.
• Validation using a larger cohort of 6288 routine samples.
• Assessment of the "Aged sample" software's performance in a clinical setting.

Main Results:

• The "Aged sample" software successfully identified aging blood samples.
• Overall flagging was reduced by 23% in a routine laboratory setting.
• No increase in false negative flagging was observed.

Conclusions:

• The "Aged sample" software on XN-Series analyzers accurately detects aged or improperly stored samples.
• This software effectively prevents false positive flagging, enhancing diagnostic reliability.
• Automated detection of sample aging improves the efficiency and accuracy of hematology analysis.