Cost-effective diagnostic device developed by IIT KGP

IIT Kharagpur after a recent research has developed a new low-cost diagnostic device which would be able to perform various pathological tests by using blood taken from a fingertip. The research team was headed by Professor Suman Chakraborty of the Mechanical Engineering Department, IIT Kharagpur. The new device would only require a paper strip kit integrated with a smartphone for analyzing and an LED light for imaging. Professor Suman Chakraborty said, "Compared to other reported portable devices for hemoglobin estimation, this device is implementable without any trained personnel at resource-limited settings and provides quantitative results comparable to pathological results".

Another professor involved with the research team was Dr. Satadal Saha who is also a medical entrepreneur. He said, "We have tested it in extremely challenging environments with uncontrolled dirt, dust and humidity, and in the absence of structured clinics or air-conditioned pathological laboratories". This device will be very helpful in detecting health problems in remote areas where healthcare facilities are very limited.