Error Code 284 means the cartridge has insufficient saliva in order to take a measurement (sometimes referred to as “it failed to wet”). There are 2 scenarios where this can occur:
- The software failed to detect any saliva flow within 900 seconds (5 minutes) of the cartridge being inserted.
- All strips were not wet within 60 seconds of the first strip wetting
Check the ‘Blue Dot” on the back of the collector, if the Dot is a solid blue and consistent from edge to edge, it indicates the sponge is (or possibly was but isn’t anymore) sufficiently wet.
If the Blue Dot is not a solid blue, then insufficient saliva was collected. If it is a solid blue dot but you still experience “insufficient saliva” this would indicate the sponge was wet, but saliva was removed at some point e.g. by the donor sucking on the sponge as they remove it from their mouth.
The Druglizer Cartridge is a ‘Lateral Flow’ type of device, very similar in nature to COVID rapid tests we have become familiar with, and needs sufficient volumes of saliva to go from one end of the strip to the other, if there is insufficient saliva to do this on one or more of the three analysis strips, this error code will be generated.
If the applicator was not inserted into the cartridge, it can be reused if done so immediately. If the applicator was inserted the cartridge must be discarded in accordance with your company policy and local regulations.
The normal cause of this can be any of the following:
- The donor has a particularly dry mouth and has been unable to generate sufficient saliva, in which case it is possible to rehydrate them with water, but you will need to wait 15 minutes before retesting.
- The donor has had something to eat or smoked in the 15 minutes prior to the test, this can cause some peoples saliva to dry-up and be unable to provide the necessary amount of saliva. It’s good practice to check before collecting the sample that they have had “nothing by mouth” 15 minutes prior to collecting the sample; if they have, best practice is to wait 15 minutes before sample collection.
- The donor did not generate enough saliva during the 60 second sample collection time or the full sample collection time was not allowed. Following the user guide instructions of how to collect a sample.
- The donor did generate enough sample but “sucked the sponge dry” when removing it from the mouth. This is not uncommon in saliva collection techniques, people fear dribbling when removing the collector – good practice is to instruct the donor not to suck on the sponge as they remove it, and not to squeeze it with their teeth as it is removed.
Before attempting the retest, explain the sample collection process to the donor, what they are expected to do, and what not to do e.g. don’t worry about dribbles, don’t suck the sponge dry on removal from the mouth, and do not drag the sponge across or between teeth on extraction.
Good practice when inserting the collector into the test cartridge is to see a small amount of saliva pooling around the edges as it is pressed down.
Good practice is to ensure the instrument is as horizontal as possible to assist in the flow of saliva from one end of the strip to the other.
Typically, it is not possible to have too much saliva on the sponge.
For further information refer to the user manual or contact Alcolizer Service on 1300 789 908.
