Blood Collection Equipment & Devices
Business is certainly ripe for change
New innovations are not expected to change the world overnight; the new devices’ applications could include wellness testing, chronic disease management, and reproductive health, among others.
Diagnostic blood testing is the most prevalent medical procedure performed and forms the cornerstone of modern healthcare delivery. It is a critical procedure, as diagnostic test results inform upwards of 70–80 percent of clinical decisions. Although the technology for blood drawing has previously remained relatively unchanged for tens, if not hundreds of years, a number of companies have been making inroads into easier, safer, and more efficient ways to collect blood samples.
The blood-collection business is certainly ripe for change. Although capillary draws and fingersticks for diagnostic work is a complementary spaces, there are clear trends and growth in this area. Today, blood sampling is dominated by a few large companies. They have been doing the same thing for decades. Although new innovations are not expected to change the world overnight, the new devices’ applications could include wellness testing, chronic disease management, and reproductive health, among others.
The global blood-collection devices market is projected to reach USD 7.8 billion by 2026 from USD 5.7 billion in 2021, at a CAGR of 6 percent during 2021–2026. The major factors driving the growth of this market include the increasing incidences of infectious diseases, the rising number of accidents and trauma cases, the emergence of liquid biopsy tests, and the rising demand for blood donations and blood components.
The Covid-19 outbreak is an unprecedented global public health challenge, and is expected to have a significant impact on the blood-collection devices market. Both hospitals and independent laboratories are generally reviewing each test to decide whether to recommend consultations with laboratory hematologists for tests with a higher risk profile or not offer tests that could not be performed safely. This affected the market negatively in the first few months of the pandemic, reducing the use of blood-collection devices. However, increasing caution and the rising testing volumes, along with the need for regular health and body checkups ensured market growth in the later phase.
Results now take an average of four to six days for the general population, much longer than the two to three days required earlier. This is because tests for hospital patients and symptomatic healthcare workers are prioritized and take one day on average, which has resulted in a delayed cycle. While it has affected market growth to some extent, the situation is expected to change for the better.
Blood collection tubes – Important role in clinical correlation
Shaji Gopinath
National Sales Manager,
Peerless Biotech Pvt. Ltd.
Blood collection tubes are one of the fastest-growing segments in the IVD industry. As the number of laboratories and hospitals increases, and as people become more aware and conscious of their health, this trend shall continue.
Laboratory tube collection is a process applied when withdrawing blood samples from patients before they get tested in the laboratory. It follows the principle, which is most commonly known as the order of draw. Different tests and biochemical assays require varying types of sample collection tubes and hence the tubes are color-coded for practical and easy identification.
In-vitro analysis of blood samples can be performed in clinical laboratories. However, these blood samples come in different forms. Testing procedures require one of the blood sample types, serum or plasma. In performing multiple collections of venous or arterial blood samples in a single patient, a color sequence of withdrawing and its indications based on the Clinical & Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) is the recommended procedure.
The correct application of the order of draw principle in multiple blood tube collection, Blood culture, Sodium citrate (3.2%), Serum/Gel, Sodium or Lithium heparin, EDTA (K2/K3), Sodium Fluoride, Sodium citrate (3.8%) is an essential aspect of ensuring quality laboratory test results.
The purpose of the order of draw is to avoid possible test result errors due to additive carryover. Incorrect order of draw may result in falsely elevated or decreased values in specific analytes in biochemistry, hematology, and serology.
These inaccurate and unreliable results can never be used in clinical correlation as they will alter the diagnosis and management of the patient’s disease.
Modern laboratories prefer vacuum tubes over nonvacuum tubes because of the easy multi-tube draws and the lower chance of hemolysis. The quality of these tubes is very important to transport samples, and the selection of the right tubes is very important as the number of laboratory chains has increased.
Peerless Biotech Pvt. Ltd., is one of the pioneers in the blood collection tubes business. We will continue to provide service and technical support to the laboratories and hospitals as their accuracy is our mission.
Collecting blood samples from patients with difficult venous access (DVA) is challenging or sometimes impossible. In DVA patients, traditionally used blood collection products are often unable to collect adequate samples, which can also lead to repeated attempts to collect blood. This increases the risk of anemia in patients, and the risk of transmission of bloodborne pathogens to nurses and phlebotomists.
To overcome this issue, innovative hematology-tube designs have been introduced to support capillary blood collection for reducing the risks of collection and processing errors in DVA patients. Besides this, a vein illumination and visualization technique – vein finder, a recent addition to safe blood collection procedures – is used to assist healthcare professionals in finding a good vein for venipuncture. The device illuminates the veins beneath the skin using ultrasound or infrared technology and facilitates easy vein access, thus reducing the need for repeated venipuncture.
There is a growing trend toward innovations in blood collection. Two firms won US FDA 510(k) clearances for blood collection devices recently – a push-button device from Seventh Sense called TAP, and a needle-free device from Velano Vascular called Pivo. Meanwhile, other firms, such as Neoteryx, are pursuing micro-sampling of blood but focusing on dried blood spots.
Safe blood and blood products are required for a variety of modern healthcare services. Maintaining blood supply requires selecting high-performance goods. In an ideal world, India’s over 3000 blood banks and present blood bank density of 2.2 blood banks per million people would be sufficient to meet the country’s blood needs. However, because each blood component is utilized for a different health necessity, failure to effectively process and store blood components independently leads to underutilization of blood. Unplanned distribution and blood bank viability issues exacerbate the problem of unmet blood needs.
The Indian blood transfusion sector is regarded as requiring legal oversight because it is not only fragmented and decentralized but also has a diverse ownership pattern. Despite this, there is no well-defined and strict regulatory framework for blood products. Frailty can result from the government’s incapacity to enforce laws, rules, and policies, as well as the personnel who are unaware of or incapable of following quality assurance and/or good manufacturing standards. While the country’s health sector has achieved significant progress in recent decades, there are certain issues that must be addressed because they may impair the timely availability of safe blood products, necessitating improved planning and monitoring of blood transfusion services.
