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Get the most value out of your
IDEXX VetLab® System Spring 2006 Issue
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Coming soon for the IDEXX VetTest®
Chemistry Analyzer and the VetLyte® Electrolyte Analyzer:
Smaller,
more convenient packaging of the IDEXX VetTrol™ Control
In November 2005, we brought you the new, conveniently prepackaged Quality Control Panel for
your VetTest® Chemistry Analyzer. The Quality Control Panel
includes four prepackaged panels of six slides each, giving you a four-month supply of
quality-control slides.
Now, to make things even easier, we’ve repackaged the IDEXX VetTrol™ Control in a
convenient four-pack, making it easier to store and reducing your risk of having expired product
in your freezer. Each box contains four control vials and four diluent vials, giving you a
four-month supply of VetTrol Control.
The VetTrol Control is used to independently verify the accuracy of your IDEXX VetTest® and VetLyte® analyzers.
For instructions on how to prepare the VetTrol Control, refer to the package insert or visit www.idexx.com/qcpanel.
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make a note
As part of the continuing improvements to our manufacturing process, you'll notice that
the outer foil wrappers of your VetTest analyzer slides are getting a new look.
The newly designed foil wrappers will begin appearing in your prepackaged panels, as well as
in your single-slide boxes. We expect to be fully converted to the new wrappers within the
next several months.
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Adding Hematology to Your Preanesthetic Workup
Most practices recognize that hematology is an important component of assessing a patient’s
health prior to anesthesia and/or surgery. “Because it is an excellent screening tool that
provides a wealth of information at a relatively low cost, we recommend preanesthesia hematology
and chemistry for all surgical candidates regardless of age.”
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Explaining Preanesthetic Testing to Your Clients
With the IDEXX LaserCyte® Hematology Analyzer, you get a
wealth of medical information at a very low cost to the client. The LaserCyte® analyzer can help you answer the following critical
questions:
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Is anemia present and, if so, is it regenerative or
nonregenerative?
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Is inflammation present with potential tissue necrosis or a
hypersensitivity component?
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Is there evidence of superimposed stress?
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Is thrombocytopenia present?
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All these questions can be answered quickly with the LaserCyte analyzer’s comprehensive,
five-part CBC and reticulocytes. When you have a better understanding of red blood cell, white
blood cell and platelet parameters, your patients are at a greatly reduced risk when undergoing
anesthesia. Many practices upgrading to the LaserCyte analyzer are charging an additional 10%
per CBC as part of the preanesthetic workup because of the advanced level of technology and
additional parameters reported.
Educated clients will pay for services they feel are beneficial. A quick conversation between
your staff and the client can emphasize the value of preanesthetic testing, as well as including
hematology as part of that screen. With the LaserCyte Hematology Analyzer, you can include
hematology for a low-cost, high-information return, using only a small amount of blood.
Call us if you are interested in receiving tools from IDEXX to help you deliver the
preanesthetic message to your clients.
Reference:
- Rebar AH, MacWilliams PS, Feldman B, et al. A Guide to Hematology in Dogs and Cats.
Jackson, Wy: Teton NewMedia; 2002.
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The IDEXX VetLab® suite of
instruments connects with a growing number of practice information management
systems.
A growing number of practice information management systems can accept patient information
from IDEXX VetLab® analyzers into your patients’ electronic records, making a paperless
practice possible and providing detailed diagnostics on-screen in minutes.
Take advantage of this connectivity and workflow enhancement by calling your practice
information management system provider to schedule a visit to incorporate this feature.
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Meet Donalee Santoro
Division Vice President,
Companion Animal Group (CAG)
Worldwide Customer Support
Donalee, who has a bachelor of science degree in veterinary animal science from the University
of Rhode Island, joined IDEXX in 1988 as a research technician, and went on to succeed in a
variety of roles within the company. In 2003, she assumed her role in our Companion Animal
Group’s Customer Support department, and has led the integration of customer support activities
across businesses and regions. CAG Customer Support encompasses in-house tests and analyzers,
reference laboratories, and pharmaceuticals. Under her leadership, CAG Customer Support has seen
continual improvement in the quality of service and time to answer for veterinary customers. In
2005, Donalee was promoted to Division Vice President, CAG Worldwide Customer Support in
recognition of her excellent performance in roles that have continued to expand in scope over
the past several years.
Donalee states that, “Our mission in customer support is to provide a consistent customer
experience that is designed to quickly provide customers with information so they can
effectively manage the health of their patients. We provide our U.S. and Canadian customers with
24/7 service, which further demonstrates our commitment to helping them deliver the best
medicine possible at all times.”
Donalee lives in Gorham, Maine, with her husband and two children, seven-year-old Henry and
five-year-old Isabella.
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Announcing the IDEXX VetLab® Station with the IDEXX LaserCyte® Hematology Analyzer
We’re offering IDEXX VetLab® system customers an
unprecedented level of information management with the IDEXX VetLab Station laboratory
information management system (LIMS). The IDEXX VetLab Station will be shipped with all
LaserCyte® analyzers ordered in North America beginning in
January 2006.
The IDEXX VetLab® Station LIMS enables you to integrate
data generated by in-house diagnostic instruments to care for your patients on a higher level.
With virtually unlimited data storage for patient records and results, the IDEXX VetLab Station
gives you more information on each patient at the point of care—when you need it most.
Featuring a new, more powerful computer and a larger 10.4" touch screen, parameter-trending
capabilities, interpretive summaries and on-screen training guides, the IDEXX VetLab Station
with the LaserCyte analyzer provides unparalleled analytical, reporting and medical reference
capabilities.
In addition, you’ll benefit from time- and labor-saving features, including the ability to run
multiple IDEXX VetLab® analyzers from a single interface,
auto-entry filling of patient and client information for reduced data entry, and easy access to
integrated reports. Practices using Cornerstone®
practice-management software can simply and seamlessly upload information into patient medical
records and invoices.
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Run
plasma samples Three times faster and more easily than serum
Use your
IDEXX VetTest® Chemistry Analyzer and StatSpin® centrifuge for results in just eight minutes
With the VetTest® analyzer, you can get fast, accurate
results for a quicker assessment of your patient’s health and more immediate treatment
decisions. In addition, using the Becton Dickinson lithium-heparin gel tube (BD™
Microtainer® tube) reduces the risk of errors or failed
tests, so you can be even more confident in your results.
Running plasma on your VetTest analyzer is not only fast, it’s easy! And more accurate
for certain chemistries.
Choosing a BD gel tube and plasma completely eliminates the need for clotting a sample, a
process that takes a full 20 minutes. When plasma is introduced to the anticoagulant as quickly
as possible, fibrin will not have an opportunity to begin forming. By using a BD gel tube, which
contains a gel barrier, you can ensure that the plasma is quickly separated from fibrin or
impurities, and that it remains separated.
With the two-minute StatSpin spin time and six minutes to results from the VetTest analyzer, you
have results in as little as eight minutes. Why wait any longer than you have to?
For more information about the StatSpin high-speed centrifuge, BD gel tubes (part number
98-13197-01) or the VetTest analyzer, call 1-800-355-2896.
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Lactate Test—Critical care cases don’t always end up
in emergency rooms. This new test for the IDEXX VetTest®
Chemistry Analyzer allows you to customize critical-care panels or run single slides.
Eight-minute plasma results and proven dry-slide technology support fast, confident
decision-making. For more information, visit www.idexx.com/lactate.
Quality Control Panel—Your VetTest® analyzer offers you uncompromising accuracy with proven
dry-slide technology. You can ensure and maintain these superior results by running this
convenient quality-control panel just once a month with VetTrol™ Control fluid. For more
information, visit www.idexx.com/qcpanel.
NSAID Monitoring Panel—Five slides targeted specifically for organs most at risk in patients on
nnsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) therapy.
Patients should have a comprehensive baseline prior to initiating therapy, and should be
monitored during the trial period and throughout treatment. Ensure that you’re following
manufacturers’ recommendations while saving time and money using this economically priced
package. For more information, visit www.idexx.com/nsaid.
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IDEXX
Customer Support is available
24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Toll-free: 1-800-248-2483
Fax: 1-800-248-3010
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