Top 10 Medical Innovations according to the Cleveland Clinic (3)
Specialists of the Cleveland Clinic, Ohio, have compiled another annual list of innovations that, in their opinion, will have the greatest impact on the healthcare system in the coming 2015.
No. 3. A new approach to obtaining and analyzing blood samples
As a result of the development of science, blood analysis has become a key approach to medical diagnostics.
To date, phlebotomy – piercing a vein and taking blood for analysis – is a routine procedure for assessing the content of various cells, lipids, proteins, carbohydrates, hormones, tumor markers and other compounds in the blood.
It is believed that 7 out of 10 clinical decisions are made based on the results of a blood test. At the same time, obtaining laboratory results necessary for the treatment of diseases such as diseases of the cardiovascular system, thyroid gland, kidneys, diabetes mellitus and many types of cancer often takes from several days to several weeks.
Thanks to new developments, the traditional approach of pulling the patient's arm with a tourniquet, piercing a vein and then filling many different test tubes with blood may soon become history. Its place will be taken by a new technology – painless, more accurate and faster, and also significantly less expensive.
The resulting procedure is much less unpleasant than taking blood from a vein, a drop of blood from the capillaries of the finger pad is placed in a miniature container ("nanotainer"), the capacity of which corresponds to the volume of a raindrop. Such nanotainers are sent to a laboratory certified in accordance with the CLIA (from the English “Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments” – amendments that improve the results of laboratory tests), using one drop of blood to conduct dozens or even hundreds of different studies, ranging from standard determination of cholesterol levels in the blood and ending with complex genetic tests.
The results obtained are sent to the attending physician within a few hours. If necessary, additional studies are carried out immediately using the same drop of blood.
Ultimately, this improved diagnostic process will provide better information that will allow detecting diseases at an early stage and immediately taking appropriate measures.
Moreover, the cost of testing a blood sample, which can be allocated both in the doctor's office and the nearest pharmacy included in the system, in most cases does not exceed $ 10. In many cases, this corresponds to only a small fraction of the cost of conducting laboratory tests using traditional methods.
To date, Theranos offers about 250 types of blood tests and provides information on its website about the real cost of each of the currently available tests.
Evgeniya Ryabtseva
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru based on the materials of the Cleveland Clinic: Top 10 Innovations for 2015.
11.12.2014