An extended family of spectral sensors from ams OSRAM enables quantitative, digitized point-of-care diagnostics for fluorescence and colorimetric based assays.

At the beginning of 2020, diagnostic testing was typically done using samples collected by professional experts who then sent the samples to be analyzed in laboratories using large, expensive specialized equipment. The professionally analyzed results took days or sometimes even weeks to make it back to you. Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and the world realized that diagnostic testing needed to change. Driven by many innovative organizations – including ams OSRAM and its customers and partners – now reliable diagnostics can often be performed for a wide range of factors, by anyone, anywhere, virtually immediately. Put your hand up if you have personally used a COVID-19 lateral flow test (LFT) recently. Such technologies are now available to buy ‘over the counter’ for personal use in many countries.

Over the past 24 months, ams OSRAM has driven a huge amount of research, development and testing to meet medical device standards and market delivery in a remarkably short period of time. The word ‘reliability’ is critical here: people need to be able to rely on the test results to determine the differing actions they need to take in response to the results. Test kits need to differentiate between different respiratory conditions like COVID-19 and types of Influenza or distinguish between bacterial or viral infections. This is where the ams OSRAM’s family of spectral sensors make a difference. The specialized optical technology means that a spectral readout compensates for typical LFT limitations. First, sensitivity is improved compared to a normal visual readout (especially for fluorescence assays). Second, laboratory benchtop accuracy can now be delivered at a handheld/disposable form factor at the point of care – and at a far lower cost. And third, a quantitative and objective result can be provided in as little as 15 minutes digitally and uploaded via a mobile device to medical-certified cloud services.

 In fact, we posed this question to our customers and partners in the diagnostics field: what would you do differently if the necessary technology was hundreds of times cheaper and available for use at the point of care? You can read about the answers we received from companies like Midge Medical, Eldim, and BiologyWorks. Each company used ams OSRAM sensor technology, based on the AS7341L spectral sensor, for their industry-changing devices that provide COVID-19 testing and much more. The AS7341L currently offers the highest spectral accuracy and sensitivity for diagnostic color measurement available on the market.

 

News source: Osram


Post time: Oct-21-2022