Stability of Reacted Reagent Strips (Chemstrips) for Blood Glucose Determinations

Abstract

Reacted Chemstrips were placed in an unsealed envelope or in desiccator vials which were opened daily after 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 14 days. The time of change of the reading for 2 days in a row by all three observers was noted. Readings in the low and normal range were most stable and can be considered reliable for 2-3 days when protected from light. If in a desiccator tube, the strips can be reliably reread when the tube is opened as long as 7 days later. In a separate study, strips were left exposed on the laboratory bench or placed in a vial and read frequently for 6 h and again at 28 h. This exposure, comparable to the CS being taped to a hospital record, results in reading changes as early as 2 h after reaction.

Assessment of a New Blood Glucose Strip: Comparison of Visidex, Visidex II, and Chemstrip bG with Glucose Analyzer Determination of Blood Glucose

“…We observed a significant decrease in bG values after only 1 day, and a continued decrease over the second day to a value 27% lower than the initial level. Our findings are similar to the reports of Shapiro et al 16 and Kubilis et al 17 The VS-II strips were stable for the first 24 h, then rapidly deteriorated from days 2 to 4, and reached a plateau that was 50% of the initial value. The strips were kept in a plain white envelope, as has been suggested by the manufacturer of the VS-II strips.…”

Use of Tactile Techniques for Self-Monitoring of Blood Glucose in Visually Impaired Patients with Diabetes Mellitus

“…DISCUSSION SMBG is a major advance in the management of patients with diabetes mellitus. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19] The techniques of SMBG are adapted to enable patients with severe visual loss to use tactile methods. Wipe-off strips are preferred, as they develop a stable color and can be stored for reading at a later time.…”

Test Strip Comparison: Visidex and Chemstrip

“…In Figure 2, 1 20 strips from the same 20 specimens are compared for stability, but the CS start at a mean of 120 whereas the VDII start at a mean of 170. 4 In summary, we consider the report by Canfield et al 1 to be seriously flawed and their conclusions unsupportable. There is no indication what the reference mean was for this set of specimens.…”