2023 · Journal of mass spectrometry and advances in the clinical lab · open access
Matrix-matched calibrators are necessary for robust and high-quality dried blood spots lead screening assays by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry
Franco et al.
The finding, in our words
Lead can be measured accurately in dried blood spots by ICP-MS only when matrix-matched calibrators are used; aqueous calibrators perform poorly. The three methods evaluated showed strong agreement with whole blood analysis and offer a robust option for decentralised lead screening in children, though the recognised limitations of dried blood spots remain.
A paraphrase to the Library’s standard, never the abstract. The source is one link away and is always the authority.
The study validated an LC-MS/MS method for eight antiepileptic drugs and two metabolites in dried blood spot and VAMS formats, with satisfactory analytical performance and stability, and was the first to include the oxcarbazepine metabolite DHCB. In 80 paired patient samples, microsampling concentrations showed promising correlation with plasma, supporting decentralised therapeutic drug monitoring of antiepileptic treatment.
Cobo-Golpe et al., Journal of analytical toxicology · source ↗
This study validated a method for measuring the alcohol biomarker phosphatidylethanol using two volumetric absorptive microsampling devices, finding that the Mitra device met all validation criteria and agreed with venous sampling. The Capitainer device was deemed suitable but showed reduced accuracy at higher concentrations, with a small proportional negative bias compared to venous results.
Andreassen et al., Journal of analytical toxicology (paywalled) · source ↗
The study validated a method for measuring cystic fibrosis drugs in dried blood spots, showing statistical equivalence to plasma concentrations, which supports their use as a less invasive alternative for therapeutic drug monitoring. It also found higher drug levels in nasal swabs, indicating localised accumulation at the disease site, which could inform more personalised treatment.
Dried blood spot sampling matched venous serum performance for islet autoantibody detection and was considered minimally invasive and convenient by parents and stakeholders, supporting its use for decentralised screening in home or community settings.
Faustini et al., Diabetic medicine : a journal of the British Diabetic Association · source ↗
This review of 2022 to 2023 work surveys dried blood microsampling for targeted and untargeted metabolomic and lipidomic profiling, finding the approach viable across paediatric research, therapeutic drug monitoring, metabolite screening, biomarker discovery, sports supervision, clinical disorder studies and forensic toxicology. The authors note that dried blood spots and VAMS dominate the published literature over other volumetric formats, and argue that harmonising analytical methods would accelerate wider clinical adoption of microsampling as an alternative to conventional plasma or serum profiling.
Couacault et al., Analytical science advances · source ↗