Acoustofluidic hematocrit determination.

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Microfluidics
• Acoustic Separation

Background:

• Hematocrit (HCT) is a critical blood parameter routinely measured in clinical settings.
• Current methods, like central lab analyzers and centrifugation, suffer from long turnaround times or manual handling.
• There is a need for rapid, on-site HCT measurement solutions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a microfluidic device for rapid HCT measurement using acoustic separation.
• To compare the accuracy and speed of the acoustic method against established reference methods.
• To assess the potential for integrating this technology into lab-on-a-chip systems.

Main Methods:

• Utilized acoustic waves to separate whole blood into plasma and red blood cell components within a microfluidic channel.
• Quantified HCT by comparing the distinct regions of plasma and red blood cells.
• Correlated results with centrifugation-based reference methods.

Main Results:

• Achieved accurate HCT measurements with a linear correlation to the centrifugation reference method.
• Provided a readout within 2 seconds with approximately 3% points HCT accuracy.
• Demonstrated improved accuracy (less than 1% point HCT error) with 20-second actuation.

Conclusions:

• The microfluidic acoustic separation method provides a fast and accurate HCT measurement.
• This technology is suitable for on-site, rapid diagnostics and integration into point-of-care devices.
• Offers a viable alternative to conventional HCT analysis, reducing time-to-result.