Immucor Receives CE Mark for NEO Iris, its Fully Automated Instrument for Transfusion Medicine

Immucor Inc., a global developer of transfusion and transplantation diagnostics, has received CE Mark approval for its next-generation automated NEO instrument, NEO Iris, which is designed to best match donor-patient blood.
 
NEO Iris builds on Immucor’s scalable technology innovation and investments since 1998 to deliver high performance, high productivity, flexibility and ease of use within transfusion medicine. More than 1,000 NEO instruments are already powering blood centers and labs around the world. Several laboratories in Europe have recently implemented 13 NEO Iris next-generation instruments into their lab environments to access:
 

• Performance: A broad test menu with high productivity for both donor and patient testing screens allows automation for up to 60 type and screens per hour;
• Productivity: Dynamic speed, workflow and resource handling support true continuous access to add samples (up to 224 at one time) or resources anytime;
• Flexibility: Good flexibility for STAT priority functionality for every sample supports the way work flows within each unique lab environment; and
• Ease of Use: Enhanced reader module for clear, real-time results and easy on-screen verification now powered by a scientific-grade camera and a Microsoft Windows-based, user-friendly touchscreen interface.

In the United Kingdom, National Health Services Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) recently installed eight NEO Iris instruments for secondary blood grouping; five of the instruments at Filton Blood Centre in Bristol, England; and three of the instruments at the Manchester Blood Centre, Manchester, England. “NEO Iris provides us a fully automated system, a move from the semi-automated system we have used,” says Bev Hirst, lead specialist-testing with NHSBTS in Manchester. “NEO Iris is preferable in our environment in many ways, both for ease of use, and also because every action on the analysers is fully auditable, which our regulators prefer. We are looking forward to collaborating closely with Immucor as we work towards the go live of the new analysers by the end of the year.”

 
Additionally, NEO Iris automatically integrates with Immucor’s data management software solution, ImmuLINK, to aggregate all serology and molecular in vitro diagnostic test results, generating a single report with a complete donor or patient testing history. NEO Iris also includes a bi-directional interface with blud_direct SM for 24/7 remote diagnostics and instrument support. 
 
“With NEO Iris, European laboratories can see blood test results faster and beyond previous operational limitations,” said Keith Chaitoff, Immucor’s chief marketing officer and vice president of international commercial operations. “When labs perform safer, faster throughputs for type and screens it means they can get the best matched blood to more patients who need it. Immucor understands that when patient care is on the line, every test result counts.”
 
NEO Iris has been CE marked for use in Europe. Clinical trials for NEO Iris are in progress in the United States.
 
NEO Iris represents Immucor’s sixth-generation instrument designed specifically to improve transfusion medicine-related workflow productivity, safety and testing flexibility within mid- to high -volume, high-throughput donor centers, clinical reference labs and hospitals.
 
Founded in 1982, Immucor is a global provider of transfusion and transplantation diagnostics that facilitate patient-donor compatibility. The company is based in Norcross, Ga.