Rapid Active-B12 Holotranscobalamin Assay helps meet the vitamin B12 Testing Challenge

GSTS Pathology, a unique joint venture between Guy's and St Thomas' and King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trusts in London, is using Abbott’s ARCHITECT Active-B₁₂ holotranscobalamin assay to provide faster, more effective diagnosis of B₁₂ deficiency for improved patient outcomes. Dr Dominic Harrington, Scientific Director at GSTS Pathology, explained: “There has been a significant growth in clinical demand for vitamin B₁₂ testing over the last few years, yet serum testing of total B₁₂ can be a poor marker of metabolically active B₁₂, which only accounts for around 20% of the total. Evidence indicates that measuring the active form of B₁₂ – holotranscobalamin – is a more reliable marker of a patient’s B₁₂ status, allowing a more accurate diagnosis to be made more quickly and easily.”

“We use the ARCHITECT Active-B₁₂ holotranscobalamin assay as a front line test which, in many cases, could determine straightaway whether the patient is deficient or replete, giving clinicians more confidence in laboratory data. Patients have benefited too; they can receive a definitive diagnosis in a greatly reduced time frame, without the need for numerous repeat tests and before significant clinical signs have developed. We started using the ARCHITECT Active‑B₁₂ holotranscobalamin assay in January 2012, and currently perform between 180 and 200 tests a day. It has been very successful. Ultimately, if we can detect suboptimal states earlier, we have the potential to deliver better care, and to save total healthcare costs over a patient’s lifetime.”