Automated sample handling in a clinical laboratory.

Bar codes have received wide acceptance and have permeated many industries since their early days in the railroad industry. They offer a simple and cost-effective approach to a variety of operational situations. Clinical labs are especially well-suited for this technology.

Test strip meconium screening for cystic fibrosis.

The Boehringer-Mannheim Corporation (BMC) strip test is extremely reliable in indicating an albumin content above 20 mg/gm of dried meconium. All infants born during one year in 14 Milwaukee area hospitals were tested. Of 16,224 newborns, two were diagnosed correctly as suffering from cystic fibrosis and two were missed. False-positive tests were obtained in 0.9% of infants (prematurity, melena, gastroschisis, and intrauterine infection). The strip test is, at present, the best available but not the perfect screening method for cystic fibrosis.