Evaluation of an engineering model of the "EKTACHEM" analyzer for glucose and urea assay.

We report results of a 21-week evaluation of an engineering model of the Kodak “EKTACHEM Glu/BUN Analyzer.” This novel clinical instrument measures glucose and “urea nitrogen” (actually, urea) in a minimum of 30 j.tL of body fluids by use of the principles of thin, multilayer film analysis and reflectance spectrophotometry. We compared the performance of the instrument to that of the Dupont aca and the Beckman Glucose Analyzer for glucose, and to the Dupont aca and the Technicon SMA 12/60 for urea. We also measured glucose in cerebrospinal fluid, with use of aqueous standards. Instrument stability during 39 days without recalibration was evaluated. Results from the EKTACHEM compared favorably with those from the other instruments with respect to precision, accuracy, analytical recovery, instrument and reagent stability, and (non-drug) interferences. General instrument performance was excellent, with little downtime. The instrument was enthusiastically accepted by our laboratory personnel.