May 7, 2009

Scientists Developing At-Home Viral Load Monitoring Device

HIV-positive people may soon be able to monitor their viral load at home by using a finger prick blood-testing gadget, BBC News reports. U.K. researchers have received a $2.67 million grant to develop a hand-held device—similar to those used by diabetics—that would alert users of a heightened viral load and if they need to see a doctor.

Investigator Anna-Maria Goretti, MD, a National Health Service consultant and coinvestigator based at London’s Royal Free Hospital, said, “If patients neglect to take their treatments or need prompting to see their [general practitioner], the device will provide a simple way of letting them know.” Goretti continued: “ It will really empower HIV patients to keep a close eye on their health and their treatments.”

The device’s sensors, called microcantilever arrays, are covered with a substance that allows them to adhere to HIV and other proteins associated with disease progression. These signs cause the sensors to bend; the resulting curve indicates the severity of the virus in the body, explained Rachel McKendry, MD, from the University College London and the London Center for Nanotechnology.  

 “This is certainly a very good idea,” said Lisa Power of the Terrence Higgins Trust, a British AIDS charity. “If you have diabetes, you can check your blood sugar levels. Similarly, it would be very useful if HIV patients could check their own viral measures, say once a month.” Power added, “It would not replace specialist advice, but it would be a way to reduce a patient’s dependence on doctors.”

Search: diabetes, viral load, University College London, Terrence Higgins Trust, United Kingdom, London Center for Nanotechnology

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Previous Comments:

don gilbert, st petersburg, 2009-05-15 15:00:29
THE PRODUCT IS A MUST!!!

Albert, Sacramento, 2009-05-14 08:24:45
I would love to see this happen! It would save time and money. What worries me is, how much the devise would cost?

Alex, NY, 2009-05-12 18:45:37
The fact is that already in medical school doctors are taught about all the ways to manipulate scientific data and not to trust drug company information. But sometime after they leave medical school, start meeting pretty sales reps, get little gifts, are taken to dinner or become speakers for various drug companies, all those warnings seem to simply vanish form their little minds. And the patient becomes someone they can use to test the most recent, least tested and most expensive medicine on, w

Mark, Minneapolis, 2009-05-12 14:15:12
I'm an elite controller and I would absolutely love this. It seems like a pointless waste of time, effort, and money for me to go to a doctor and have them tell me what I've come to expect - CD4 cells are high, and VL is undetectable. This way, if there was a rise at some point, I could make the appropriate appointment with a doctor to begin clinical monitoring or drug assistance.

Mike, St. Pete, 2009-05-12 12:25:42
Great! The only thing my HIV specialist does is read my viral load & T-cells... Then charge me $195.00 for the less than 5 minutes. My City will give my Doctor away And screw lab corp who makes a fortune doing lab work as well. I can read my own numbers and know the drugs better then my infectious disease specialist who is subpar but one of the few left, and takes (rips off my) high dollar rippo-off health insurance ($610.00 mo)