BM strips: how accurate are they in general wards?

Area of Science:

• Clinical Chemistry
• Point-of-Care Testing
• Medical Diagnostics

Background:

• Point-of-care testing (POCT) devices like BM Test Glycemie 20-800 strips are widely used for rapid glucose monitoring.
• Accurate glucose measurements are critical for timely and appropriate patient management, especially in emergency settings.
• General ward settings present unique challenges for maintaining the accuracy of diagnostic tests.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the accuracy of BM Test Glycemie 20-800 strips for plasma glucose determination in a general ward setting.
• To compare BM strip results with laboratory-based plasma glucose measurements.

Main Methods:

• Simultaneous plasma glucose measurements were performed using BM Test Glycemie 20-800 strips and a Beckman II glucose analyzer.
• A total of 183 emergency out-of-hours plasma glucose requests were analyzed.
• Accuracy was defined as the BM strip value being within one strip-range of the laboratory value.

Main Results:

• Fifty-nine (32.2%) of the BM strip results were deemed inaccurate based on the defined criteria.
• In 22 of the inaccurate results, the discrepancy was significant enough to potentially lead to inappropriate clinical management.
• The specific reasons for the observed inaccuracies were not identified in this study.

Conclusions:

• BM Test Glycemie 20-800 strips demonstrated a concerning level of inaccuracy when used in general wards for plasma glucose testing.
• A significant proportion of inaccurate results could have clinical implications, potentially leading to incorrect treatment decisions.
• Improved training for ward staff and the implementation of formal quality control schemes are recommended to enhance the reliability of these point-of-care glucose tests.