An evaluation of the Monarch chemistryanalyser

摘要

The Monarch Chemistry system, a centrifugal analyser incorporatingsophisticated robotics for analytical rotor transfer and flexiblesoftware for workload scheduling, has been evaluated. The opticalsystem is capable of monitoring absorbance, fluorescence and lightscattering reactions. In addition, an ion selective electrode unit maybe incorporated for the measurement of sodium, potassium andchloride.The precision, accuracy, linearity, calibration stability andcarry-over were investigated for 19 routine chemistries. Thewithin-batch and between-day precision data were good in themajority of cases; some chemistries demonstrated poor performanceat low analyte concentrations. Method comparison studies showedgood agreement, with small discrepancies being due to differentcalibration material and methodological differences. Major discrepancieswere found with CK and LD; linearity studies weregood in all cases, except calcium. No significant sample or reagentcarry-over was found.Assessment of throughput for a variety of test profiles variedbetween 300 and 605 tests per hour.The instrument was easy to operate, very flexible and capable ofhandling a large and varied workload.