A cost effective method for stabilizing commercial QC for the measurement of HbA1c using TOSOH G8 analyser

Abstract

Haemoglobin A1c(HbA1c) represents a key biomarker in diabetes diagnosis and management, as it is indicative of glucose control during the preceding 2-3 months. Laboratories undertaking the measurement of HbA1c utilize Quality Controls (QC) to monitor precision, accuracy and reproducibility of results generated which is an integral part of any health care laboratory. Commercial companies supply lyophilised QC materials with Target mean and acceptable range. After reconstitution it is stable for 7 days as per the control inserts. The stability of reconstituted lyophilised QC material beyond 7 days is not well established and there are lacunae in the literature about the stability of reconstituted QC material at temperatures below 0C. The purpose of this study was to develop a simple method to extend the stability of are constituted commercial HbA1c lyophilised QC material in an attempt to maximize its usage, reduce wastage and make significant cost savings. Clinical laboratories could easily adopt this proposed method as it is easy to implement, and would extend the stability of their reconstituted lyophilised Quality Control (QC) material for a much longer period.