Smartphone app used to scan blood for parasites

Conclusion This study suggests a new smartphone-based approach could provide a quick way of measuring levels of infection with the Loa loa worm in blood samples, and with a high level of accuracy. This technique could allow assessment of people's infection in communities without easy access to the laboratory testing that is usually used to detect the worms. This is important, as people with high levels of this infection can suffer potentially fatal side effects with the drug ivermectin, which is used to treat two other parasitic infections. It's worth bearing in mind that this was a pilot study in only 33 people using a prototype device. The new device will require more refinement and testing to make sure it performs well enough before it can be put into practice.  The test seemed to correctly pick up all people with worm levels that would make ivermectin unsafe, but did class 6% of people as having unsafe levels when in fact laboratory tests found they had safe levels. This means that 6% of people might miss out on ivermectin unnecessarily. If its accuracy is confirmed, this new approach could allow health workers to quickly determine on site whether it is safe to give someone ivermectin for the treatment of river blindness or elephantiasis. Elephantiasis is a leading cause of preventable disability in the developing world, while river blindness is the second leading cause of infection-related blindness. Approaches that allow cheap, effective and safe mass treatment pr...
Source: NHS News Feed - Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Medical practice Source Type: news