Biochemical Wonder

We have an automated biochemistry laboratory. I am no expert on it, but I know that you have to put the blood sample in it, load the reagents, and press a button. Bingo, you get a report of all the tests you asked for. They write the reports manually instead of getting a print out, probably to save paper and ink. That is an eco friendly move. We have a composite form, in which you just have to fill the patient’s details, such as the name, age, sex, registration number, and tick mark the tests you want done from a big list. Theoretically if you tick mark all, you get all. But we are not very theoretical people. We are practical. Or perhaps the autoanalyzer is smart. If the blood urea nitrogen level is normal, often the serum creatinine report does not come. The machine must have a fuzzy logic (perhaps the logic is not called fuzzy, but I like that word) which determines that serum creatinine level need not be checked because the blood urea nitrogen level is normal. The machine also sees if the serum is clear or yellowish. If it is clear serum bilirubin levels are not assayed. The report is given as ‘nonicteric’. These practices are there for so long, I have forgotten exactly how long they have been prevalent. It must have been 25 or thirty years. It is remarkable that all the new machines they got in this time have the same fuzzy logic, and the working does not change. I think ours must be the first and the only laboratory with such smart machines.