Validation of the i-STAT and HemoCue systems for the analysis of blood parameters in the bar-headed goose, Anser indicus

Abstract

Every year, bar-headed geese (Anser indicus) perform some of the most remarkable trans-Himalayan migrations, and researchersare increasingly interested in understanding the physiology underlying their high-altitude flight performance. A majorchallenge is generating reliable measurements of blood parameters on wild birds in the field, where established analyticaltechniques are often not available. Therefore, we validated two commonly used portable clinical analysers (PCAs), the i-STATand the HemoCue systems, for the analysis of blood parameters in bar-headed geese. The pH, partial pressures of O2 and CO2(PO2 and PCO2), haemoglobin O2 saturation (sO2), haematocrit (Hct) and haemoglobin concentration [Hb] were simultaneouslymeasured with the two PCA systems (i-STAT for all parameters; HemoCue for [Hb]) and with conventional laboratorytechniques over a physiological range of PO2, PCO2 and Hct. Our results indicate that the i-STAT system can generate reliablevalues on bar-headed goose whole blood pH, PO2, PCO2 and Hct, but we recommend correcting the obtained values using thelinear equations determined here for higher accuracy. The i-STAT is probably not able to produce meaningful measurementsof sO2 and [Hb] over a range of physiologically relevant environmental conditions. However, we can recommend the use of theHemoCue to measure [Hb] in the bar-headed goose, if results are corrected. We emphasize that the equations that we provideto correct PCA results are applicable only to bar-headed goose whole blood under the conditions that we tested. We encourageresearchers to validate i-STAT or HemoCue results thoroughly for their specific study conditions and species in order toyield accurate results.