Re: Biogenex Optimax timing problems

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From:"Tim Morken" <timcdc@hotmail.com> (by way of Marvin Hanna)
To:histonet@histosearch.com
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Amos wrote: <<The automatic stainer (BioGenex Optimax) took
until 1:00 in the afternoon to complete>>

We have seen a problem involving the timing sequence on the Optimax. If the
incubation times are short (ie. 5-10 min) the software can't seem to figure
out how to get all the slides done at once. On a full run (48 slides) we end
up with the last slides finishing long after the first slides. This may be
the problem you are running into with special stains. The problem, as I see
it, probably has to do with the need to pickup and dispose of a pipet tip
for each reagent; that adds a lot of time to each step.

Tim Morken, B.A., EMT(MSA), HTL(ASCP)
Infectious Disease Pathology
Centers for Disease Control
MS-G32
1600 Clifton Rd.
Atlanta, GA 30333
USA

email: tim9@cdc.gov
       timcdc@hotmail.com

Phone: (404) 639-3964
FAX:  (404)639-3043


----Original Message Follows----
From: Amos Brooks <atbrooks@snet.net>
To: winde002@mc.duke.edu, histonet <histonet@pathology.swmed.edu>
Subject: Re: Biogenex Optimax User Question
Date: Thu, 27 Jan 2000 18:53:53 -0500

Hi,
     We demoed this stainer too, and in spite of the fact that we are in the
market
for an an automated stainer, we found it to be counter productive.
     This product comes with a hefty price tag. So one would expect it to
save money
in the form of either tech time or faster results. Suffice to say it DIDN'T.
We
started several stains (PAS, AFB, Retic, etc) on this stainer at 7:00 one
morning
then started the same stains (for side by side comparisons) at at 8:00 by
hand. We
finished the hand stains by 10:00 with usual results. The automatic stainer
took
until 1:00 in the afternoon to complete, and most of the Retic sections fell
off the
slides on the automatic stainer (bone marrows are such a pain sometimes).
Obviously
no rapid results savings.
     The tech time it saved was gobbled up by the cost of the ancillary
products
required for the machine (dispensers, product specific reagents etc.). The
worst
part of it was that we were looking for a product which we could batch our
bulk
stains such as AB/PAS which is often over 100 slides at a time. This machine
doubles
the time taken to hand stain the same stain while only doing about 50 slides
in a
batch.
     I would advise searching the market carefully before committing
yourself to this
automatic stainer. Shandon and Leica both have great automatic stainers.
Still, for
many stains you still cant beat the old fashioned hand stains.
Amos Brooks








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