Ektachem evaluation

The Eastman Kodak Ektachem 400 Analyzer was evaluated in terms of its precision, linearity, accuracy, and interferences for two colorimetric tests (neonatal bilirubin and albumin), a two point rate colorimetric test (amylase), and four potentiometric tests (sodium, potassium, chloride and carbon dioxide). The precision study results obtained were comparable to those of other laboratory instruments for five of the seven tests under consideration. The exceptions were carbon dioxide at the high range (30 mmol/L) and albumin at the low range (2 g/dl). Linearity checks were satisfactory for all seven tests but albumin, where a negative bias was observed in readings below 2 g/dl. Accuracy testing by comparison of patient results of the Ektachem technology and other laboratory methods was acceptable for all seven tests except albumin and amylase. Interference studies indicate that the Ektachem methodologies are less susceptible to elevated triglyceride and protein interference than comparable laboratory methods for sodium and potassium analysis. As a result of this evaluation (and other studies not presented here), the Ektachem 400 Analyzer was implemented in this laboratory for all tests except amylase, albumin and creatinine, i.e., glucose, urea nitrogen, sodium, potassium, chloride, carbon dioxide, calcium, uric acid, cholesterol, triglyceride, total protein, ammonia, and neonatal bilirubin were acceptable

EMOTICOM: A Neuropsychological Test Battery to Evaluate Emotion, Motivation, Impulsivity, and Social Cognition.

In mental health practice, both pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments are aimed at improving neuropsychological symptoms, including cognitive and emotional impairments. However, at present there is no established neuropsychological test battery that comprehensively covers multiple affective domains relevant in a range of disorders. Our objective was to generate a standardized test battery, comprised of existing, adapted and novel tasks, to assess four core domains of affective cognition (emotion processing, motivation, impulsivity and social cognition) in order to facilitate and enhance treatment development and evaluation in a broad range of neuropsychiatric disorders. The battery was administered to 200 participants aged 18-50 years (50% female), 42 of whom were retested in order to assess reliability. An exploratory factor analysis identified 11 factors with eigenvalues greater than 1, which accounted for over 70% of the variance. Tasks showed moderate to excellent test-retest reliability and were not strongly correlated with demographic factors such as age or IQ. The EMOTICOM test battery is therefore a promising tool for the assessment of affective cognitive function in a range of contexts.This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from Frontiers via http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fnbeh.2016.0002