FEATURE ARTICLES

What impact could standardised clinical LC-MS/MS assays have on patient care? Here, Professor Brian Keevil talks with Thermo Fisher Scientific market development specialist Sarah Robinson.

Research in the medical laboratory provides opportunities both for the seasoned professional and also those in the early stages of their career. The work reported below focuses first on guidance provided to aid the establishment of defined reference intervals, and second reflects on the implementation and use of large, whole-mount sections and their value in the histopathological assessment of colorectal cancer.

The University Hospital of Wales, like other hospitals around the UK, experienced tissue block storage logistical problems and has now turned to a cost-effective system that offers assurance of quality and security.

Barbara Wild and colleagues from UK NEQAS Haematology examine the responses to a recent abnormal haemoglobin distribution, and also discuss findings from the Liquid Newborn Specimens Scheme.

Ian Jennings and Rob Jones report on proceedings of the first day of the UK NEQAS for Blood Coagulation annual scientific and participants’ meeting, which was held in Sheffield last year.

Following publication of Lord Jim O’Neill’s review on antimicrobial resistance, new guidance has been issued by NICE on antibiotic prescribing, and some progress has been achieved; however, there are many resistant infections that continue to pose a significant threat to public health.

The Biomedical Science Congress scientific programme once again provided a compelling reason to attend the twelfth biennial event, held last autumn at the ICC in Birmingham. Here, Pathology in Practice takes a brief look at some content highlights.

Introduction of an ambitious managed service contract has allowed the Blood Sciences Service in Leeds to realise its ambition of delivering an automated HbA1c diagnostic service. Richard Liversidge and Stephanie Shaw explain.

The fifth in a series of articles on individual aspects of the assessment of uncertainty of measurement sees Stephen MacDonald consider some of the more difficult questions that may be faced in relation to measurement uncertainty

Loss of bacterial viability during any significant holding period following sampling compromises subsequent recovery by culture. Here, Jamie Laughlin assesses the performance of a range of swab collection devices.

Automated molecular diagnostics is proving to be a valuable tool in the management of influenza and norovirus outbreaks. Here, the benefits of this approach are highlighted by the experiences of three district general hospitals.

The International Convention Centre in Birmingham recently hosted one of the largest gatherings of biomedical and life science companies held anywhere in the world. The following review provides a snapshot of a biennial event that combines the best that biomedical science and the in vitro diagnostics industry can offer.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.