Point-of-care solutions – uncomplicated and fast -- MEDICA - World Forum for Medicine
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Image: A negative rapid test lying on a sheet of paper; Copyright: panthermedia.net/thegoatman

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Topic of the Month August 2017

Point-of-care solutions – uncomplicated and fast

Point-of-Care solutions are medical rapid tests, which can be carried out in an uncomplicated way in nearly any place and without requiring a lot of time. The samples do not have to be sent to a laboratory but can be analyzed in a hospital, at the doctor’s or at the pharmacist’s. A lot of tests, like blood sugar testing or pregnancy tests, can even be carried out and evaluated by the patient. We present you a number of current research approaches to POCT-solutions in our Topic of the Month August.

Point-of-care testing: helpful when things need to happen quickly?
Advances in technology and analysis techniques, as well as the increasing miniaturization of laboratory equipment and processes, make it possible: patient-side laboratory testing, better known as point-of-care testing or POCT. There are many POCT projects and all of them promise a rapid diagnosis as well as economic advantages. But are these tests also suited for everyday medical testing?
Read the article about Point-of-care-testing

Molecular Microsystems: Preventing Exacerbations of Asthma and COPD

An increasing percentage of the world population suffers from chronic inflammatory disorders of the respiratory system. Acute attacks often lead to a worsening of the disease and considerably reduce the patient’s lung volume. Nine institutes of a research alliance under the Leibniz Institute umbrella are working on technologies designed to predict and thus prevent exacerbations.
Read the interview with Prof. Jürgen Popp here

Without any delay: drug dose adjustment at the point of care

Many therapeutic drugs are very powerful, but they are also very toxic at the same time. Thus, they have to be measured regularly, again and again, so that an adjustment of the individual drug dosage can be made. Until now, the "normal" way was to take the blood sample, send it to a central laboratory and get the results after some days. A new point-of-care test can measure it in 15 minutes. 
Read the interview with Dr. Jean-Manuel Segura