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Updated: Mar 6, 2026

A Precision Medicine Tool for Measurement and Monitoring of Hemoglobin S in Sickle Cell Disease Patients Receiving Transfusion Therapy
Variation in haemoglobin measurement across different HemoCue devices and device operators in rural Cambodia
Aviva I Rappaport1, Susan I Barr1, Timothy J Green2
1Department of Food, Nutrition and Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
: Point-of-use haemoglobinometers, such as the HemoCue, are a common method to measure haemoglobin (Hb) concentration in field settings as the device is portable, requires only a small finger-prick capillary blood sample and computes an immediate Hb reading. The aim of this study was to compare Hb measurements across different HemoCue devices and across device operators using capillary blood samples collected from women during a trial in rural Cambodia. We compared mean±SD capillary Hb concentration (g/L) across n=12 different HemoCue Hb 301 devices and across n=9 device operators among 2846 Cambodian women. Significant variability in mean Hb concentration was observed across HemoCue devices (means ranged from 117 to 124 g/L) and across device operators (means ranged from 118 to 124 g/L). This variability is of particular concern when a single HemoCue device or device operator is used at different time points in surveys or research trials.
: Point-of-use haemoglobinometers, such as the HemoCue, are a common method to measure haemoglobin (Hb) concentration in field settings as the device is portable, requires only a small finger-prick capillary blood sample and computes an immediate Hb reading. The aim of this study was to compare Hb measurements across different HemoCue devices and across device operators using capillary blood samples collected from women during a trial in rural Cambodia. We compared mean±SD capillary Hb concentration (g/L) across n=12 different HemoCue Hb 301 devices and across n=9 device operators among 2846 Cambodian women. Significant variability in mean Hb concentration was observed across HemoCue devices (means ranged from 117 to 124 g/L) and across device operators (means ranged from 118 to 124 g/L). This variability is of particular concern when a single HemoCue device or device operator is used at different time points in surveys or research trials.
Trial Registration Number:
NCT02481375.
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