Can automated blood film analysis replace the manual differential? An evaluation of the CellaVision DM96 automated image analysis system.

Automation of differentials is desirable for economic and time-saving reasons. Over the last 20 years, automated imaging processes have started to be introduced where stained blood films are scanned by a computer-driven microscope and leucocytes classified; however, early methods were slow and had difficulty in classifying abnormal cells. More recently the CellaVision DM96 (CellaVision AB, Lund, Sweden) has been introduced with added features such as continuous loading of slides and a faster throughput than previous instruments.