Precision and accuracy of a point of care glucometer for detection of hypoglycaemia in horses.

This study is aimed at determining the precision and accuracy of point-of-care (POC) glucometers in detecting hypoglycaemia in horses, and how they compare with a standard laboratory method.

Objective of the Study

• The research focuses on evaluating the measurement error of POC glucometry, a common method used in horses to measure glucose levels, especially when analysing hypoglycaemic samples (those with glucose level less than 4mmol/L).

Methodology and Findings

• The research compared glucometry results from a point-of-care glucometer (POC) with those obtained from a standard laboratory method of glucose measurement (LAB).
• For determining the precision of these methods, repeatability coefficients were calculated. The coefficients were 0.47mmol/L for POC and 0.09mmol/L for LAB, indicating a higher accuracy in the laboratory method.
• The coefficient of variation, another measure of precision, was found to be 10% for the POC method and 2.11% for the LAB method, again placing the LAB method as more precise.

Systemic Bias and Accuracy

• The study found systemic bias in the POC method with a mean bias of -0.26mmol/L as compared to the LAB method.
• The limits of agreement were between -0.88 and 0.37, and less than 70% of measurements with the POC method were within 20% of the results obtained using LAB, indicating less accuracy in the POC method.

Conclusion and Recommendations

• Overall, the findings of the study signal the need for further evaluation of the diagnostic performance of glucometers.
• Specifically, criteria such as reference ranges for hypoglycaemic samples and other measurement standards need to be established to ensure accurate and reliable detection of hypoglycaemia in horses.