AccuTest, a federally approved PT provider, has released the DigitalPT Laboratory-Standardization Program, a turnkey solution for laboratories to implement a key National Institutes of Health (NIH) recommendation aimed at detecting kidney disease in earlier stages.
The National Kidney Disease Education Plan (NKDEP) of the NIH recommends that laboratories routinely report an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) with every adult serum creatinine test using a prediction equation. Because creatinine measurements vary among different manufacturer platforms and models, creatinine testing needs to be standardized to properly implement eGFR.
AccuTest’s program uses fresh human serum samples assayed with an approved reference method. Participants receive a comprehensive assessment of total error, calibration bias, imprecision, and a custom bias-correction formula, which is applied postanalytically. The corrected creatinine result is then used to calculate an eGFR.
“The standardization program is a proven, turnkey solution for the immediate implementation of eGFR,” says Bill Donohue, president of AccuTest. “Effective screening today can spare many patients from a life dependent upon dialysis or a kidney transplant.”
An extensive pilot project with a large health care organization (107 laboratories and 7,800 physicians) validated the program approach. Before, only 50.4% of participants measured creatinine for a patient with Stage 3 kidney disease within 10% of the reference method target. After the program, this number increased to 90.3%.
The standardization program and pilot project data are available online or by request.
AccuTest Proficiency Testing Services
(800) 665-2575; www.digitalpt.com
