Smartphone App Helps Detect HIV, Syphilis

First Posted: Feb 04, 2015 06:06 PM EST
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Could your smartphone one day detect HIV or syphilis?

New findings published in the journal Science Translational Medicine are examining how a low-cost device could help spot markers of this infectious disease from one finger prick of blood within just 15 minutes. If approved, this would be the first smartphone accessory to replicate all the functions of a laboratory-based blood test.

Health care workers in Rwanda tested the device by analyzing blood samples from 96 patients. They were also given 30 minutes of training on the device and 97 percent of the patients had a positive response to it.

The device involves a dongle that attaches to the headphone jack of the smartphone and requires no separate batteries. It contains a lab on the chip as well as a pump that can draw blood inside the device for testing. The test used is an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).

The blood then changes color and opacity based on various chemicals, revealing the results in just about 15 minutes.

Researchers came up with the idea when thinking of HIV testing equipment for developing countries and rural areas. Not only is the device inexpensive, but it can hold a charge for a relatively long period of time.

"Our dongle presents new capabilities for a broad range of users, from health care providers to consumers," Samuel Sia, an associate professor of biomedical engineering at Columbia Engineering, concluded in a university news release."By increasing detection of syphilis infections, we might be able to reduce deaths by 10-fold. And for large-scale screening, where the dongle's high sensitivity with few false negatives is critical, we might be able to scale up HIV testing at the community level with immediate antiretroviral therapy that could nearly stop HIV transmissions and approach elimination of this devastating disease."

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