Comparison Study of Reticulocyte Enumeration by H*3 RTX(TM), FACScan(TM), and Manual Counting / 대한임상병리학회지

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Reticulocyte counts provide clinically useful informations and the most widely used method for counting reticulocytes is a manual microscopic procedure. Although manual method is inexpensive and relatively simple to perform, it is labor intensive and imprecise. So, more rapid and more reproducible methods are needed. METHODS: Reticulocyte counts on 96 blood samples were performed by conventional manual method, H*3 RTX(TM)(Bayer, U.S.A.), and FACScan(TM)(Beckon Dickinson, U.S.A.). The changes of reticulocyte count after storage of samples and certain time intervals after preparation were also examined. RESULTS: Reticulocyte counts(%) by manual method, H*3 RTX(TM), and FACScanM were 2.05+/-2.16, 1.95+/-2.24 and 2.51+/-1.94, respectively. There was no statistically significant differences between manual counting and H*3 RTX(TM)(P>0.05). However, there were significant differences between H*3 RTX(TM) and FACScan(TM), manual counting and FACScan(TM)(P<0.05). Correlation coefficients of three comparisons were all above 0.920. Statistically not confirmed the reticulocytosis sample showed decreasing tendency of reticuocyte count by H*3 RTX(TM) after storage of the sample and prepared sample and others were relatively stable in H*3 RTX(TM)and FACScan(TM). CONCLUSIONS: The result of the mean difference between H*3 RTX(TM) and manual counting is statistically insignificant. So, the H*3 RTX(TM)can be used interchangeably with manual counting atter consideration of cost-effectiveness.