US-based medical device company Roche has confirmed the safety and efficacy of the CoaguChek XS System for use by healthcare professionals at point of care and for patients to conduct self-tests at home.
Point-of-care and patient self-testing (PST) are increasing standards of care for patients on anticoagulation therapy who need regular prothrombin time (PT) / international normalised ratio (INR) tests.
With a convenient form of testing device, patients can adhere to their prescribed testing frequency while healthcare professionals can make timely treatment decisions.
Patients who adhere to their testing schedule spend more time in their therapeutic range, which in turn leads to lower incidence of stroke or bleeding.
If monitoring of INR occurs monthly, around 50–60% of patients remain in their target range while 77–85% of patients remain in the target range if monitored weekly and up to 92% if monitored every three days.
Roche Diagnostics chief medical officer Dr. Alan Wright said: "Patients and caregivers are often pleased to learn that they can test at home rather than have blood drawn in a lab.
"In appropriately selected patients, CoaguChek PT / INR testing provides precise, accurate results, time savings and convenience."
Patients on vitamin K antagonist therapy can monitor their PT / INR values by themselves at home or on vacation with the help of CoaguChek XS system.
Using a single drop (10μl) of blood from the fingertip, the system provides precise measurement within one minute.
The device uses electrochemical measurement techniques, and comes with on-board strip control and fail safe feature.
Image: CoaguChek XS system. Photo: courtesy of PRNewsFoto / Roche Diagnostics.
