i-STAT PT INR to PT Plus

I have not, but I do want to ask if your middleware (e.g. RALS, Telcor, etc.) requires you to upgrade or do additional work?

We are going to switch to PT Plus cartridges. We have Telcor and will need to upgrade to the latest Abbott DE version 2.11 to accommodate the switch. 

I am currently in the same position. I have asked Telcor to upgrade our middleware and have begun discussion with my laboratory director to determine how much validation we need to complete just to validate PT plus cartridge since we are currently using PT. I only have 10 IStats that run PT cartridges. I contacted Abbott and they sent me method validation info on PT Plus method validation but since I already have PT validated as a method, I'm not sure I will need to do a full validation on all 10 meters. I will let you know more once my director makes a decision. 

@ T Nguyen, what is your plan for validation?

We are switching as well - Abbott is sunsetting the "regular" PT/INR cartridge in May, I last heard.  I was also told that the technology for this cartridge is different so a full validation as if it were a new test is necessary. Unfortunately!  I called CAP and was told that we can use the PT/INR for the patient comparisons (vs PT plus) so that's one small positive. 

I need to calculate what this change will cost us this year. I'm still waiting for pricing information from our sales rep. Are the PTplus cartridges and controls going to cost more than the current PT/INR? 

From the pricing I received, there's about a 5% increase in the newer cartridges.  Not sure if volumes can influence pricing, though.