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StatSpin Express primary tube centrifuges
	StatSpin Express Primary Tube centrifuges are ideally suited to Point of Care testing as they are simple to use, compact, fast and easy to maintain. Ideal for clinics, critical care units, accident & emergency departments and doctor’s surgeries. StatSpin Express centrifuges save crucial sample preparation time when the need for fast diagnostic tests is imperative. In just 2 minutes the Express centrifuges can produce serum or plasma equal to tubes spun for 7 to 10 minutes in a conventional clinical centrifuge.


Speed
	The StatSpin Express 2 can process up to 4 samples at a time with tube sizes up to 5ml and has 3 settings; 30 seconds, 2 or 3 minute cycles. The Express 3 can process up to 8 samples at a time, with tube sizes from 1.5ml to 10ml, with a selection of 3 settings; 2, 3 or 5 minute cycles. The new Express 4 can process up to 8 samples at a time, with tube sizes from 1.5ml to 10ml for a 3, 5 or 10 minute cycle.
	This fast spin time is crucial during coagulation tests, sample preparation for STAT chemistry and cardiac profiles.
	‘Current guidelines established by the European Society of Clinical Cardiology recommend that the initial evaluation of patients with chest pain be performed within 20 minutes of their arrival in the emergency room. However one of the key challenges in the ED environment is the time consuming process of transporting blood to a central laboratory and subsequently clotting and spinning down the sample in a conventional batch centrifuge, these factors can add as much as 40 minutes to the turnaround time. Additionally, the guidelines state that the optimum TAT from patient arrival to the availability of the test results for these cardiac markers is 30 minutes or less.
	To speed the sample preparation process, StatSpin have developed the Express 3 to be used as a dedicated STAT centrifuge, to complement rather than compete with conventional, high volume laboratory batch centrifuges.
	If an ER switches from a serum based sample to plasma and positions a dedicated StatSpin Express 2 unit near a POC analyzer, centrifugation of the sample can be accomplished in three minutes or less. This can reduce the turnaround time by 30 to 35 minutes compared to centrifugation in a central lab as there’s no need to wait for batch processing. Moreover, it’s easier to safeguard the sample because the reduced handling and transportation minimizes the chance of breakage or mix-ups with other specimen tubes’.* Currently StatSpin Express 3’s are being used in clinics for chronic disease management, here the Express is used in conjunction with a haematology analyser to do glucose and full blood counts.

Efficiency
	The effectiveness of StatSpin centrifuges has been demonstrated in a number of published technical papers. For example, Kimberly Foster, et al., of Bayer Corporation, Diagnostic Division’s “Evaluation of a Centrifuge with Rapid Turnaround Time for the Preparation of Plasma Samples for Measurement of Common STAT Markers on the ACS: 180 System” (Clin.Lab 2000; 46: 157-160) paper. Here she concludes, “In our studies the accuracy of results of six different assays with the StatSpin method has been shown to be the same as the conventional separation method. For these reasons, the StatSpin method may be considered as a positive addition to any laboratory that is concerned about rapid turnaround time of blood processing. This method can be of great utility not only for samples where STAT answers are required, but also for samples where the analyte may be especially labile and where sample handling is critical.”
	One concern sometimes voiced about performing rapid centrifugation relates to how well samples produced by fast centrifugation correspond to those produced on slower speed laboratory centrifuges. BioMérieux conducted a study to compare the quality of samples recovered by rapid centrifugation on the StatSpin versus that of samples recovered by conventional centrifugation. The results reported for the two methods were virtually identical, with a 0.996 “R” factor or coefficient of correlation between samples’.* A major advantage of centrifugation with the StatSpin Express Centrifuges is increased confidence with Potassium results as the PPH assays are more stable if the samples are centrifuged immediately, also the Express offers a wider window of time and therefore creates flexibility with Courier collection. Click Here for a comparison study written by Dr. Afruj Ali Ruf, a consultant healthcare scientist in the Haematology Department of Airedale General Hospital, West Yorkshire. In his study Dr. Ruf looks at INR testing using current conventional centrifugation and then using StatSpin rapid centrifugation in warfarin clinics. Click Here for an article published in Biomedical Scientist Magazine looking at how the use of StatSpin personal centrifuges can streamline sample processing within General Practice.

Portability
	The StatSpin Express Centrifuges are designed perfectly for use within Point of Care testing. A compact footprint means that the unit can be easily put in a doctor’s office or in an area where there isn’t a lot of desk space. This is also a huge advantage to clinics as the Express is easily portable; neatly transferred in its small carrying case along with its power cable. There is minimum set up; simply plug it in and switch it on. The Express has 3 programmed spin settings, making it incredibly user friendly, but also ‘avoids the problem of different user’s randomly changing speed of time settings.’*
*	This information was taken from ‘Point of Care’ by Gary N .Wolfe, featured in issue June 2003 of Clinical Lab Products Magazine. Click here to see the full article.