Distribution agreement expands HbA1c POC testing reach in Middle East & Africa

EKF Diagnostics, the global in vitro diagnostics company, has announced that it has signed a three-year distribution agreement with Tosoh Europe N.V. for the distribution of its Quo-Test^® HbA1c point-of-care (POC) analyzer in the Middle East and Africa. Tosoh Bioscience division is one of the largest global manufacturers of high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) equipment for glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) analysis predominantly in core laboratories. As a desktop analyzer designed for simple and reliable HbA1c measurement for monitoring and managing diabetes in POC settings, such as diabetes clinics and doctors’ surgeries, EKF’s Quo-Test analyzer complements Tosoh’s HPLC technology.

Tosoh Europe has seen a growing need for point-of-care HbA1c analysis alongside its traditional laboratory market and has identified EKF Diagnostics as an important partner to work with in order to provide this to its customers. As a leading HPLC manufacturer, Tosoh’s analyzers are frequently used to benchmark and validate POC devices such as Quo-Test. This agreement will allow both EKF and Tosoh Europe to work in markets they have previously been unable to access and provides Tosoh Europe with the opportunity to offer new services to suit changing customer requirements.

“We are delighted to partner with Tosoh Europe as they expand their need for point-of-care HbA1c analysis in a time where those suffering from diabetes are at greater risk,” commented Julian Baines, CEO of EKF. “Tosoh is a leading HPLC brand and its analyzers are considered to be the gold standard when validating POC products such as EKF’s Quo-Test. For them to choose our analyzer to complement their lab-based HPLC analyzers for HbA1c testing is a great endorsement of our technology.”

Quo-Test is fully automated and quantifies HbA1c from a 4μL sample taken from a finger prick or venous whole blood. Unaffected by most hemoglobin variants, lab-quality results are available within four minutes and reported in IFCC and DCCT standard units. Also facilitating its use as a POC analyzer, step-by-step instructions are displayed on Quo-Test’s multi-lingual display, minimizing staff training time and minimizing user-related errors.

After the initial three-year term for the Middle East and Africa, EKF’s Quo-Test distribution agreement with Tosoh Europe has a rolling one-year renewal with the option to extend the agreement into EU countries as required.

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