Lab Systems

EASY TO USE

• Electrolytes and More: Electrolytes on one slide, individual slide options, and pre-packaged panels including the Comprehensive Plus, let you configure the profiles you require.
• Completely Automated Dilution: No guesswork on measuring dilutions or calculating results. The DRI-CHEM® chemistry analyzers provide automated dilution and results calculations on every parameter for samples outside of measurable limits..
• Sampling Flexibility: Choose the 1.5-ml heparinized sample tube or pipette serum or plasma from your regular red-top or green-top tubes into a non-heparinized tube.
• Stack and Run: Load up to 22 tests (20 slides) at one time without jamming, using the convenient stackable slide rack.
• Whole Blood Solution: Heska’s lithium heparin sample tubes save you a step. Go from syringe to centrifuge to analyzer with no pipetting required.

Solid Reproducibility

Solid reproducibility is the essential foundation required for analytical reliability. If a system has demonstrated reproducibility, is calibrated to a standard, and calibration is monitored by a quality control program, the user can be assured of accurate results. This eliminates or reduces the need for individual facilities to replicate accuracy studies.

Reproducibility is easily tested by repeated analysis of the same sample. Below are tables of reproducibility of 20 sequential replicate analyses using the comprehensive panel with electrolytes, and sera with abnormal values for a number of analytes. The Mean, in combination with the Minimum and Maximum values, is the best gauge for interpretation of reproducibility.

• These data represent excellent reproducibility. Note that concentration measurements are expected to be more precise than enzyme activity measurements.
• Good reproducibility is expected to be tighter than the tolerance limits of a QC program.
• With excellent reproducibility you can trust the DRI-CHEM® analyzer to provide accurate results.

Excellent Correlation

The DRI-CHEM® 4000 technology was tested in comparison with the most commonly established chemical procedures on an automated Hitachi® system. This system and these procedures are used by most professional veterinary laboratories and teaching hospitals.

Data presented here include combined analyses of plasma and sera from dogs and cats for analytes having a range of available abnormal samples for testing. These show excellent correlation for a population of animals measured on two different technologies.

Simple Quality Control

From the clinical perspective, a QC program provides day-to-day assurance of instrument accuracy and reliability of patient results through assays of external controls (i.e., blood or serum, similar to patient sample) with known ranges of acceptable values for each test performed. This allows the clinician to interpret laboratory data with greater confidence.

Heska’s TrueQC™ Protocols are patterned after ASVCP recommendations and include a process for implementing a simple and reliable QC program that validates critical factors inherent to in-hospital chemistry testing. These recommendations are based on a hospital’s testing volume. Daily QC testing should be implemented wherever possible, particularly in hospitals testing three or more profiles per day. Daily QC is most aligned with standard laboratory practices and provides the greatest degree of certainty and validation of accurate laboratory results.

In situations that warrant a more periodic approach, QC material should be run at the beginning of each week, prior to any patient samples being run. This approach may be more suited for low testing volumes of less than three profiles per day and is recommended for chemistry analysis only. This weekly QC plan should be supplemented by spot checks when results do not meet preconceived clinical expectations.

Dry Chemistry

There are two types of biochemistry testing systems for clinical testing: those utilizing liquid reagents and those that test based on dry reagents, which are easier to handle. Dry chemistry has been an accepted technology in medical laboratories for many years and numerous clinical evaluations have validated this technology against conventional wet chemistry analysis. Heska’s DRI-CHEM chemistry analyzer is powered by Fujifilm technology and leverages more than 75 years of dry chemistry research and development. The state-of-the-art sample surface detection feature monitors air pressure changes and detects inadequate sample volume before the slide is wasted. Along with coated tips which prevent sample wicking and provide accurate delivery, the DRI-CHEM analyzer brings advanced solutions to in-hospital chemistry testing.

No Interference from Lipemic Samples
Lipemia, hemolysis and icterus (hyperbilirubinemia) are common interferents in all clinical chemistry systems as shown below. Lipemia is the most common problem on liquid chemistry systems, because the turbidity associated with lipemia scatters light in the measurement of absorption by the reactant fluid.

Together, Heska and FUJIFILM are leading the way with technological advances that successfully eliminate lipemia as an interferent, while reducing the number of tests affected by icterus to a single parameter, and significantly decreasing the parameters impacted by hemolytic samples.

This is accomplished because the DRI-CHEM analyzer uses reflectance (rather than absorbance) technology to measure the color reaction. This, along with the slide sample spreading layer, reduces the effect of light scatter on the sample. In addition, electrolytes which are measured by potentiometry are not affected by interfering substances at all.

Flexible Slide Configuration

With the DRI-CHEM Analyzer, configure profiles that you require without wasting tests that you don’t want. Add electrolytes and lipase to any sample run. Run a panel, run an individual slide, or combine panels and individual slides to create virtually unlimited options specific to your patients’ needs. And with weighted slide stabilization, you can be sure your slides are transferred into the incubator seamlessly with no jamming.

Automated Dilution

Not all patient chemistry parameters fall within the measurable range of an analyzer. When an absolute value is critical to a diagnosis, treatment plan, or prognosis, the auto-dilution feature on the DRI-CHEM analyzer gives you the information you need.

In cases where patient results are above the analyzers’ measureable limits you can quickly obtain a result by performing a dilution in a few simple steps:

1. Add your slides and sample tube.
2. Place a dilution cup and diluent (distilled water) into the analyzer.
3. Add your tips.
4. Select your dilution factor.

The sample rerun feature on the DRI-CHEM analyzer eliminates data re-entry; your previous patient number, sample ID and reference interval are recalled with the touch of a button.

No manual pipetting or re-calculation required; the auto-dilution feature on the DRI-CHEM analyzer does it all — minimizing the chance of error. These fully automated steps ensure dilution results are reliable and allow you to focus entirely on your patients.

TEST MENU

INDIVIDUAL SLIDES

BUN, CREA, ALP, ALT, PHOS, GGT, TBIL, AST, GLU, TP, ALB, Ca, Mg, NH₃, TRIG, LIP, AMY, CK, URIC, CHOL, TCO₂ (for DRI-CHEM 7000 and Element DC only), LDH, Electrolytes (Na⁺, K⁺, Cl^-)

PANELS

Pre-surgical Panel
(ALP, ALT, BUN, CREA, GLU, TP)

Kidney Panel
(ALB, BUN, CREA, Ca, PHOS, TP)

Liver Panel
(ALB, ALP, ALT, GGT, GLU, TBIL)

Equine Panel
(ALB, AST, BUN, CREA, Ca, CK, GGT, GLU, LDH, PHOS, TBIL, TP)

Comprehensive Panel
(ALP, ALT, BUN, CREA, GLU, TP, TBIL, ALB, PHOS, Ca, CHOL, GGT)

Comprehensive Plus Panel
(ALP, ALT, BUN, CREA, GLU, TP, TBIL, ALB, PHOS, Ca, CHOL, GGT, LIP, AMY, Mg, TRIG, AST, Na⁺, K⁺, Cl^-)

CALCULATED VALUES

Globulin, Na⁺/K⁺ Ratio, Albumin/Globulin Ratio, Corrected Calcium, Estimated Osmolality, BUN/Creatinine Ratio

SPECIFICATIONS

Specifications	Description
Throughput	128 tests per hour (simultaneous CM and ISE tests)
Incubation Temperature	98.6° F (37° C) (CM); 86° F (30° C) (ISE)
Incubation Time	1 to 6 minutes
Number of Incubator Cells	CM 12, ISE 1
Individual Tests Available	25 total tests including ALT, ALP, GGT, TBIL, AST, BUN, CREA, PHOS, GLU, TP, ALB, Ca, CHOL, Mg, AMY, LDH, LIP, TCO2, TRIG, CK, URIC, NH3, Na+, K+, Cl– (electrolytes on one slide)
Pre-Packaged Panels Available	Comprehensive, Comprehensive Plus, Pre-Surgical/Wellness, Liver, Kidney or Equine
Slide Capacity	20 slides simultaneously per cartridge
Pipetting Fluid Volume	Below 50μL (automatic switching)
Dilution	Automatic dilution (dilution factor: max. 10)
Measurement Precision	0.0004 OD/5 minutes
Measurement Accuracy	± 0.005 OD (600 nm)
Display	5.7 in. color touch panel
Measurement Wavelengths	400 nm, 415 nm, 505 nm, 540 nm, 577 nm, 600 nm, 625 nm, 650 nm
Light Source	Halogen lamp (6V, 10W)
Operating Temperature	59 to 89° F (15 to 32° C)
Operating Humidity	30 to 80% RH (no vapor condensation)
Electrical Requirements	Voltage Limit: 100–240V, Frequency: 50–60 Hz
Data Transfer	RS232C interface (1 port), LAN (1 port), USB interface (1 port bar code reader only)
External Dimensions (H x W x D)	16.5 x 18.5 x 14.2 in.
Weight	53 lbs.

CLINIC SUPPORT

• Complete Test Menu for Heska Lab Systems
• HeskaView Integrated Software
• Interfering Substances
• Performance Summary Report

CLIENT INFORMATION

• Annual Wellness Exams and Blood Testing

VIDEO

• Demo the DRI-CHEM 4000