Point of Care D-dimer Testing at Frimley Park

Frimley Park Hospital in Surrey, UK, has recently invested in Radiometer’s AQT90 FLEX system for point of care D-dimer testing in its Accident and Emergency Department, where it forms part of a screen to help rule out the presence of venous thromboembolism in at-risk patients.

Lynda Petley, Manager Point of Care Testing Team in the hospital’s Pathology Department, explained: “Following an extensive laboratory evaluation, the AQT90 FLEX was identified as ‘best of breed’ for our requirements, satisfying both the analytical and ergonomic issues which informed our decision to adopt this as a point of care test.”

“The AQT90 FLEX is a closed tube system which eliminates the health and safety risks inherent in systems requiring sample transfer, and password protection helps to ensure that only those staff who are trained and competent have access to the instrument. It is an intuitive system that animates the process on screen, clearly showing the user the correct process to follow. The style of the operating software on the AQT90 FLEX is similar to that on the Radiometer blood gas analysers, which are already in use throughout the Trust, and so is already familiar to many users.

D-dimer is now supported as a point of care test in both primary and secondary care arenas and, once firmly established, will replace laboratory testing.”