Performance of the Statstrip Glucose Meter in Inpatient Management of Diabetes Mellitus

The use of hospital point-of-care glucose meters in inpatient care is widely established despite unsolved issues regarding accuracy. The aim of this study was to validate the performance of the StatStrip Glucose Hospital Meter (Nova Biomedical, Waltham, USA) in performing glycemic profile in hospitalized diabetic patients undergoing intensified insulin therapy. We investigated total imprecision, inaccuracy, and analytical range limits by measuring glucose in 481 plasma samples of diabetic patients. Total imprecision was 2.4% and linearity ranged from 1.3 to 31.9 mmol/L. The results correlated well (r=0.9868) with the laboratory routine procedure with a determined bias of 2.1%. Total error of the method was 4.5%, which was within designated criteria for laboratory glucose measurement. Diagnostic testing revealed a 100% sensitivity and 100% specificity in detection of hypoglycemic episodes (n=16), respectively. StatStrip Glucose Hospital Meter is a simple, accurate and reliable tool for assessing glycemia levels in inpatient management of diabetes mellitus.