Advanced smartphone-enabled medical device technology being developed in the UK is exactly the sort of rapid diagnostic test technology highlighted in a new Government report as being vital in stopping the unnecessary use of antibiotics.
Today’s report (Friday, 23rd October) from the Review on Antimicrobial Resistance* says that rapid point of care diagnostic tests will provide a central part of the solution in managing the demand challenges posed by the waste of antibiotics on patients that do not need them.
To overcome exactly this sort of problem, advanced smartphone-enabled medical device technology for the rapid and cost-effective detection of infectious diseases is moving closer with a new product development programme being undertaken by the UK-based OJ Bio.
The company has developed a new point of care diagnostic testing device, Xtalline, that uses special biosensors to identify the presence of various diseases in patient samples, with the results of the tests being displayed on a mobile phone app or healthcare systems.
The new product development programme is already underway that will see the device being used for the detection of C-reactive protein (CRP).
CRP is a protein biomarker of inflammatory disease, which can be used to rule out serious bacterial infections and which has therefore been proposed as an effective control tool in the reduction of the inappropriate prescribing of antibiotics.
Testing for CRP in laboratories is possible but not adopted very well by GPs and other professionals as patients often request immediate results. Studies have showed that point-of-care tests for CRP reduced antibiotic prescription by 31 %, which is a significant step in fighting growing immunity to some antibiotics. Dale Athey, chief executive of OJ Bio, said: “The new Xtalline device provides a low cost test that dramatically improves the speed of diagnosis and treatment of diseases without sending samples to the laboratory.
“Currently, GPs and frontline health workers have no easy way of determining if a patient with flu-like symptoms is suffering from a bacterial or viral infection and may therefore take the cautious decision to prescribe antibiotics.
“However, by providing an immediate indication of a lack of bacterial infection at the point of care, the device removes this uncertainty, helping the patient to understand why antibiotics may not be necessary and are not being prescribed.”
OJ-Bio’s new diagnostic testing device derives its performance and ease of use from the longstanding expertise of its parent companies. It converges state of the art electronics of Japan Radio Company and cutting-edge nanobiotechnology of Orla Protein Technologies.
No complicated equipment is needed for the analysis which is based entirely on electronics. The surface acoustic wave chips, normally found for a different purpose in mobile phones and other electronic devices, are converted into biosensors. Coating them with proteins gives them highly specific responses when coming into contact with samples containing disease biomarkers.
The portability and low training and maintenance requirements allow testing and monitoring to be undertaken by anyone anywhere.
The Xtalline technology is suitable for use not only by professionals, but also by individuals, meaning reliable early diagnosis using the device will empower patients to gain access to treatment and improve their health and wellbeing. More details at www.oj-bio.com
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Today’s report (Friday, 23rd October) from the Review on Antimicrobial Resistance* says that rapid point of care diagnostic tests will provide a central part of the solution in managing the demand challenges posed by the waste of antibiotics on patients that do not need them.
To overcome exactly this sort of problem, advanced smartphone-enabled medical device technology for the rapid and cost-effective detection of infectious diseases is moving closer with a new product development programme being undertaken by the UK-based OJ Bio.
The company has developed a new point of care diagnostic testing device, Xtalline, that uses special biosensors to identify the presence of various diseases in patient samples, with the results of the tests being displayed on a mobile phone app or healthcare systems.
The new product development programme is already underway that will see the device being used for the detection of C-reactive protein (CRP).
CRP is a protein biomarker of inflammatory disease, which can be used to rule out serious bacterial infections and which has therefore been proposed as an effective control tool in the reduction of the inappropriate prescribing of antibiotics.
Testing for CRP in laboratories is possible but not adopted very well by GPs and other professionals as patients often request immediate results. Studies have showed that point-of-care tests for CRP reduced antibiotic prescription by 31 %, which is a significant step in fighting growing immunity to some antibiotics. Dale Athey, chief executive of OJ Bio, said: “The new Xtalline device provides a low cost test that dramatically improves the speed of diagnosis and treatment of diseases without sending samples to the laboratory.
“Currently, GPs and frontline health workers have no easy way of determining if a patient with flu-like symptoms is suffering from a bacterial or viral infection and may therefore take the cautious decision to prescribe antibiotics.
“However, by providing an immediate indication of a lack of bacterial infection at the point of care, the device removes this uncertainty, helping the patient to understand why antibiotics may not be necessary and are not being prescribed.”
OJ-Bio’s new diagnostic testing device derives its performance and ease of use from the longstanding expertise of its parent companies. It converges state of the art electronics of Japan Radio Company and cutting-edge nanobiotechnology of Orla Protein Technologies.
No complicated equipment is needed for the analysis which is based entirely on electronics. The surface acoustic wave chips, normally found for a different purpose in mobile phones and other electronic devices, are converted into biosensors. Coating them with proteins gives them highly specific responses when coming into contact with samples containing disease biomarkers.
The portability and low training and maintenance requirements allow testing and monitoring to be undertaken by anyone anywhere.
The Xtalline technology is suitable for use not only by professionals, but also by individuals, meaning reliable early diagnosis using the device will empower patients to gain access to treatment and improve their health and wellbeing. More details at www.oj-bio.com
Help employers find you! Check out all the jobs and post your resume.
