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The Hemo-matic Analyzer: a new occult blood testing device
Insights
The Hemo-matic Analyzer offers a more sensitive and reliable method for fecal occult blood screening compared to traditional guaiac cards. This advanced device simplifies testing by eliminating dietary restrictions and interference from common substances, aiding early colon cancer detection.
Area of Science:
- Clinical diagnostics
- Gastroenterology
- Biomedical engineering
Background:
- Fecal occult blood testing is crucial for early colon cancer detection.
- Traditional guaiac-based tests (e.g., Hemoccult II) have limitations due to strict dietary requirements and interference from various substances.
- A need exists for more sensitive and user-friendly screening methods.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the sensitivity and performance of the Hemo-matic Analyzer.
- To compare the Hemo-matic Analyzer with the Hemoccult II test for fecal occult blood screening.
- To assess the impact of interfering substances and sample stability on the Hemo-matic Analyzer's performance.
Main Methods:
- In vitro and in vivo evaluation of the Hemo-matic Analyzer's sensitivity.
- Comparative analysis against the Hemoccult II test.
- Assessment of interference from ascorbic acid, plant peroxidase, and red meat.
- Evaluation of sample stability over time.
Main Results:
- The Hemo-matic Analyzer demonstrated approximately six times greater sensitivity than Hemoccult II.
- The device was unaffected by ascorbic acid, plant peroxidase, or red meat ingestion.
- Positive results remained stable for over 10 weeks post-preparation.
- The analyzer's filter electrostatically binds Hb, excluding interfering substances.
Conclusions:
- The Hemo-matic Analyzer is a highly sensitive and robust device for fecal occult blood screening.
- It offers significant advantages over conventional guaiac card tests, including simplified patient compliance and improved accuracy.
- This technology represents a valuable advancement for early colon cancer detection programs.
Abstract:
It is now recognized that screening for fecal occult blood is useful to alert the clinician to possible colon cancer in an early stage. The guaiac impregnated card is not widely used because patients must maintain strict diets omitting red meat, peroxidase-containing foods, iron supplements, and ascorbic acid. The Hemo-matic Analyzer uses a special filter to adsorb fecal Hb which is then automatically washed free of interfering substances and quantitatively identified. The filter electrostatically binds Hb and not pepsinized blood or substances that interfere with occult blood testing. We evaluated the sensitivity of this device and compared it to the Hemoccult II test in vivo and in vitro. It was approximately six times more sensitive than Hemoccult II and was not influenced by the presence of ascorbic acid, plant peroxidase, or ingestion of a large quantity of rare red meat. In addition, the samples remained positive more than 10 wk after preparation. The Hemo-matic Analyzer is a useful new device that offers many advantages over Hemoccult card testing for screening for colon cancer.