INDUSTRY NEWS
Two companies will collaborate on the development of a point-of-care (POC) system that will enable near-real-time results for a range of common blood tests. Sensortec (St. Helier, Jersey, UK), which owns intellectual property rights to electrochemical biosensor technology, will partner with DxTech LLC (Melbourne, FL, USA), a diagnostic technology specialist, to develop a novel method for analyzing blood tests and results.
The technology would enable doctors and patients to get almost-immediate blood test results. The new testing method would be an alternative to the current practice of sending samples away to central laboratories, where days—if not weeks—are needed before results are ready. The system is expected to enter product demonstrations in 2007 and full commercialization in 2008.
The POC system will have the capacity to analyze multiple blood samples simultaneously in the time frame of a few minutes. According to the companies, no other device can currently give such a range of blood tests at comparable speed and accuracy. Test and quality control data are transmitted by means of a small electronic reader to a centralized data management system where patient results are stored and made available for merger into the patient electronic medical record or any one of many options selected by the clinician for managing patient information. The unit will also include automatic billing to insurance companies in markets, or in individual cases, where private medical insurance is held. The biosensor technology has multiple applications and has already been evaluated for use in detecting such contaminants as mycotoxins and drug residues.
For more information, contact Sensortec Ltd., Augres House, 16 Dumaresq St., St. Helier, Jersey, JE2 3RL, UK; phone: +44 1799 531144; fax: +44 1799 531174; e-mail: duncan.purvis@universalsensors.co.uk; Internet: www.sensortec.uk.com.
