A new device launched at Arab Health which detects seasonal influenza in less than 13 minutes and provides results in five minutes or less.
This announcement was done by the UAE’s Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) in collaboration with Abbott Park at the annual health conference, held at Dubai World Trade Centre and involves A, B and ‘Strep A2’ strands of the virus.
The UAE’s Ministry of Health and Prevention will be the first to use the device in the region.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the test gives physicians the confidence to make fast clinical decisions and prescribe the proper treatment at an early stage.
It also helps control the improper use of antibiotics, when treatment depends only on the patient’s symptoms.
Dr. Yousuf Al Serkal, Assistant Undersecretary for the Ministry’s Hospitals Sector, said, “The new device, one of the world’s latest in detecting flu type A, B, RSV, and Strep A2 bacteria, is a ground-breaking innovation which helps MoHAP raise its healthcare quality and reduce and control infectious diseases.
“It is an important leap in the methods of early recognition of Bacterial pharyngitis, particularly when it comes to giving accurate results, through which doctors can prescribe the proper antibiotic. The device, in more than twice the speed of other molecular tests, is able to partly detect the DNA of group A bacterial streptococcus, which is the main cause of bacterial pharyngitis, where molecular results are provided in six minutes or less, and positive results in as few as 2 minutes,” Al Baloushi added.
“Preventing seasonal influenza is one of MoHAP’s strategic priorities to achieve prevention and control of community members from infectious diseases, and to develop the health system and enhance its efficiency by raising the efficiency of health practitioners and attracting the best preventive and treatment methods.
The Strep A2 device for the early and quick analysis of seasonal flu and respiratory-track diseases brings together the quick and effective delivery of results. The tests provided by this device enable clinicians to give the correct diagnosis and the proper treatment in a timely manner.
The Ministry of Health and Prevention in partnership with Abbott has revealed the success of implanting the highly precise device “CardioMEMS PA sensor” for patients with heart failure. The new device reduces hospital admissions by 58 percent as it can predict the health condition of the patient’s heart and send an email to his doctor if there are warnings of heart failure, thus taking the necessary treatment measures.