What technology does the VetScan HM5 utilize?
The VetScan HM5 uses a combination of chemical differentiation and impedance technology to provide the 5-part WBC differential. With impedance technology, electrically neutral blood cells generate an electrical pulse as they each pass through an electronically charged aperture. Cell counts are determined by the number of pulses measured in a given volume of blood over a set period of time. The size of the pulse generated is directly proportional to the volume of each cell. This size discrimination, along with susceptibility to various lysing agents, distinguishes the cell types and provides basis for the 5-part differential. The size of the VetScan HM5 aperture was specifically designed to accommodate veterinary blood cells, thereby providing optimal differentiation.
