RECENT FEATURE ARTICLES
Integrating diagnostics: not a takeover but fundamental to better care
The era of diagnoses based on incomplete datasets is at an end, Here, Dr Brendan Devlin explains why the ‘ologies’ must be connected and what integrated diagnostics is actually about.
Antimicrobial resistance: what are our future needs?
The fight against antimicrobial resistance is so important that it is the subject of the 21st-century equivalent of the Longitude Prize. Here, Sarah Wallis puts current commercial issues and developments into context.
Pathology and the NHS Five Year Forward View
Delegates from across the NHS pathology spectrum attended the annual national information technology conference, staged earlier in the year by CliniSys at The Belfry in the West Midlands. Donald Saum reports.
Macro digital imaging for advanced perinatal post-mortem investigations
Sarah Davis and colleagues at Birmingham Women’s Hospital are using the MacroVIEW DM system from Menarini Diagnostics. Here, they report on how the system has revolutionised routine mortuary practice.
Body fluid analysis: automated system versus manual method
Anna Finuliar and Alison Hadfield examine the laboratory methods in use to quantify and differentiate cells in body fluids, and assess the value of automation in routine practice.
Clinical performance of the EliA anti-thyroid-stimulating hormone receptor assay
The TSH receptor is a primary antigen in Graves' disease hyperthyroidism, and the presence of TSH-R-specific antibodies are indicative of the condition. Recently, automated assays measuring these antibodies have proved useful in diagnosis, as this article explains.
Confidence in haemostasis solutions for NHS hub and spoke networks
Gill Eyre speaks to Pathology in Practice about company successes and how far Stago has developed since it first opened in the UK over 10 years ago.
Internal quality control as the means of determining measurement uncertainty
The next in this series of articles on individual aspects of the assessment of uncertainty of measurement sees Stephen MacDonald consider the role of internal quality control, the most commonly used method, and provides some examples in straightforward assays.
Serious Hazards of Transfusion scheme: a review of 2016 data
Laboratory Incidents Specialist Hema Mistry summarises the 2016 SHOT Annual Report and looks at why the same errors are still occurring, and why many of them could have been prevented.
Hot topics in microbiology: an ideal opportunity to join the BSMT grapevine
The committee of the British Society for Microbial Technology reports from its annual scientific meeting, held earlier in the year at PHE Colindale in London.
Biomedical Science Congress: an exhibition of excellence
Next month, the International Convention Centre in Birmingham will host one of the largest gatherings of biomedical and life science companies held anywhere in the world. The following selection of brief exhibitor previews provides a taste of what IBMS Biomedical Science Congress delegates and visitors may find to interest them on individual stands in the exhibition.
Inoculum standardisation device for the EUCAST disk-diffusion method
Support for antimicrobial susceptibility methodology is changing, and laboratories face testing times in this important area of practice. Here, Andrew Ferguson and Rahila Chaudhry assess different approaches.
OXA-48-, KPC- & NDM-type carbapenemase-producing organism detection
Multidrug resistance exhibited by a range of microorganisms is a growing problem, a prime example being that resulting from carbapenemase production. Here, Gemma Vanstone and colleagues assess the value of the RESIST-3 O.K.N. lateral-flow immunochromatography assay.
Clinical benefits of IgE antibody profiling with ImmunoCAP ISAC
Since the introduction of the ISAC microarray more than a decade ago, an increasing number of allergist and other specialists have made use of its broad and detailed sensitisation profiles, as this overview from Thermo Fisher Scientific illustrates.
Harnessing the potential offered by digital pathology: an update
Pathology and cancer leaders from the UK and across Europe met in London in May at a Philips Digital Pathology Workshop to learn how a Lean-based business tool can be used to build the case for digital pathology.
Point-of care testing and EQA: a look in the current literature
The external quality assessment of point-of-care testing (POCT) has not been a prominent feature of coverage in the literature over the past decade or more, as the examples highlighted below demonstrate. However, with the ever-increasing application of POCT in modern clinical medicine, this is an area of quality management that requires attention.
Faecal immunochemical testing: introducing the service at NHS Tayside
Faecal immunochemical testing is a fairly recent advance in the screening of patients for inflammatory bowel disease or colorectal cancer. Success in Scotland has shown that implementation of FIT can reduce the number of unnecessary colonoscopies, as Judith Strachan explains.
New approach to D-dimer testing for the elderly in the emergency setting
With publication of the final part of Stago’s DiET study into venous thromboembolism, Laurence Loï considers the role of D-dimer testing when clinicians are faced with elderly patients in the emergency setting.
Congress: science, the profession and industry
Next month the twelfth in the biennial Congress series will return to the International Convention Centre in Birmingham, and the focus once again will be on the very best that biomedical science and commercial colleagues have to offer. Here, Pathology in Practice provides a brief overview of the four-day event.
Antibiotic stewardship: good news, bad news and the latest updates
Although the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control has issued a warning that the last line of antibiotics is failing, there are encouraging signs that antibiotic stewardship is improving, with healthcare and veterinary professionals making positive changes in prescribing practice.
Featured Supplier
Advanced Instruments has been a leading developer and manufacturer of analytical instruments and services for the clinical, biopharmaceutical, and food & beverage industries for more than 65 years. Globally, we provide innovative technologies aligned with the needs of the markets we serve, helping to improve efficiency, enhance productivity, and...
Upcoming Events
ECCMID 2024 - European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases
Fira Gran Via, 08038 Barcelona, Spain
27-30 April 2024
British Society for Microbial Technology Annual Microbiology Conference
UK Health Security Agency, Colindale, London
2 May 2024
EQA Reports: Interpreting Key Information & Troubleshooting Tips
ONLINE - Zoom
Thursday 16th May 2024
Participants’ Meeting: UK NEQAS Immunology, Immunochemistry & Allergy
Sheffield Hallam University, City Campus, Howard Street, Sheffield
24th May 2024
Med-Tech Innovation Expo
NEC, Birmingham
5-6 June, 2024
UK NEQAS Blood Coagulation: Clinical and Laboratory Haemostasis 2024
Sheffield Hallam University
5th - 6th June 2024
Access the latest issue of Pathology In Practice on your mobile device together with an archive of back issues.
Download the FREE Pathology In Practice app from your device's App store