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Evaluation of the i‐STAT hand‐held chemical analyser during treadmill and endurance exercise
Author(s) -
SILVERMAN S. C.,
BIRKS E. K.
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
equine veterinary journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.82
H-Index - 87
eISSN - 2042-3306
pISSN - 0425-1644
DOI - 10.1111/j.2042-3306.2002.tb05481.x
Subject(s) - blood lactate , treadmill , analyser , venous blood , medicine , base excess , partial pressure , zoology , chemistry , physical therapy , oxygen , surgery , blood pressure , chromatography , heart rate , biology , organic chemistry
Summary This study examined the accuracy and precision of a ***hand‐held, chemical analyser, i‐STAT, in measuring selected blood constituents which may be of use in the diagnosis and management of metabolic disorders found in exercising horses. Venous blood samples were taken from 3 Thoroughbred geldings, fit and trained to exercise on a treadmill, both before and after exercise at a speed sufficient to elicit V̇O 2max . The samples were analysed both with the i‐STAT and with in‐house analysers to compare the values of pH, partial pressure of oxygen (PO 2 ), partial pressure of carbon dioxide (PCO 2 ), bicarbonate (HCO 3 ), lactate and base excess (BE). The i‐STAT demonstrated acceptable accuracy and precision for determination of pH, PO 2 and PCO 2 , and lactate. We concluded that these parameters could be reliably evaluated by the i‐STAT. The i‐STAT was further evaluated at veterinary checkpoints during a 60 and 100 mile endurance ride. Because a built‐in thermostat prevents function when the temperature of the analyser is outside the optimum range (16–30°C), it was necessary to insulate the i‐STAT from extreme ambient temperatures. As this portion of the study was conducted in warm temperatures, the appropriate insulation was to maintain the i‐STAT in an ice‐cooled container except during actual blood analyses. Further investigation into the feasibility of using hand‐held chemical analysers at the veterinary checkpoints during endurance rides is recommended.