Duggan Veterinary Supplies has launched a new automatic faecal egg analyser – the OvaCyteTM system – to the Irish and UK markets.
Telenostic Ltd developed the system in conjunction with University College Dublin and ICHEC (Irish Centre for High-End Computing).
Duggan Veterinary Supplies is distributing the system, which it brands as an “impressive” point-of-care solution now available to veterinarians in Ireland.
A spokesperson told That’s Farming that it is an affordable small footprint analyser that would easily fit into a small laboratory in a veterinary clinic.
Currently, vets have the choice of sending samples to a reference laboratory or performing tests in-house.
Both options utilise manual microscopy-based methods for identifying and counting the eggs, of which the McMaster is the most common.
How does it work?
The OvaCyteTM system makes use of a 2-minute easy sample preparation method, and then once filled, the cassette is placed onto the analyser.
From here, the process is fully automated, requiring no time from the operator.
The analyser, which is essentially a scanning microscope with an inbuilt camera, systematically images the channel in the cassette.
These high-quality images are uploaded to the cloud-based Artificial Intelligence algorithms.
They identify and count the ova and oocysts and send back a report in real-time as the scan is proceeding.
Advantages
Donal Duggan, of Duggan Veterinary, highlighted the advantages of a system such as OvaCyteTM:
- High analytical sensitivity providing high precision results,
- Results are ready to read in minutes;
- Highly standardised system leading to the consistency of results;
- Time-saving relative to lab-based testing or in-house manual McMaster counts.
He explained:
“Systems such as this will hopefully remove the barriers of traditional FEC methods and lead to the increased utilisation of the very important strategy of targeted treatment implementation through evidence-based FECs.”
Dr Craig Mincher, clinical and veterinary director, Telenostic, added:
“We believe OvaCyte™ and other technologies we are developing have the capacity to positively impact the broader veterinary, agricultural, medical and environmental industries, and we look forward to working with Duggan Veterinary in utilising these technologies.”
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