Novel volumetric adsorptive microsampling technique for determination of perfluorinated compounds in blood
Koponen et al.
The finding, in our words
The VAMS™ device reproducibly collected 10 μL of capillary blood via finger-prick for perfluoroalkyl acid analysis with good linearity, repeatability and accuracy independent of haematocrit. Acceptable sample stability and ease of use in real-world collection support decentralised environmental biomonitoring.
A paraphrase to the Library’s standard, never the abstract. The source is one link away and is always the authority.
This study compared four dried blood spot devices for glucocorticoid detection, finding that the Mitra VAMS device offered the best combination of analytical recovery and user usability, whilst the HemaXis DB10 showed the least bias compared to whole blood.
Chen et al., Analytica chimica acta (paywalled) · source ↗
A 2025 review maps 28 microsampling devices, from dried spots and volumetric absorptive tips to upper-arm liquid capillary collectors, and names what a laboratory must control before their results are used: the haematocrit effect in non-volumetric dried samples, interstitial fluid from finger milking, volume, haemolysis and transport stability. Regulators on both sides of the Atlantic ask for the same two things, a device the patient can use safely and a sample fit for the test.
A VAMS method for 24 mycotoxins was validated against FDA and European Commission guidelines, showing no haematocrit bias and acceptable stability for 21 days at room temperature. Comparison with liquid whole blood from 20 samples revealed no missed exposed cases and comparable levels of key mycotoxins, supporting VAMS as an alternative to venous sampling in resource-limited settings.
The study developed and validated an LC-MS/MS method for THC, its metabolites and synthetic cannabinoids in both dried blood spots and VAMS, showing that VAMS eliminates the haematocrit effect that limits DBS accuracy, thereby providing a reliable tool for toxicological and anti-doping analysis in decentralised settings.
Protti et al., Journal of chromatography. B, Analytical technologies in the biomedical and life sciences (paywalled) · source ↗
VAMS eliminated the variable haematocrit bias seen with DBS, but a residual haematocrit-dependent recovery effect persisted at high haematocrit: the nuance that assays still need per-analyte validation.