An ingestible sensor allows doctors to remotely monitor tuberculosis patients' intake of medication, potentially saving lives, researchers said in a recent article>medicalxpress.com.

The article quoted a study conducted at the University of California at San Diego published in the journal PLOS Medicine. The study found in a random trial of 77 patients in California that 93 percent of those using the sensor were taking their daily treatment doses, compared with 63 percent who did not use the sensor.

According to the article, around 10 million people contract tuberculosis annually, and in 2017 1.6 million people died from the chronic lung disorder. Medical personnel attribute poor adherence to treatment regimes with the continued transmission and the emergence of drug-resistant strains of the disease.

In the study, the so-called Wirelessly Observed Therapy (WOT) involves a patient swallowing a small, pill-sized sensor and wearing a paired patch rel="nofollow" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: rgb(233, 118, 34); text-decoration: none; font-weight: bold;">real-time their medication intake using a phone app.

"If we are serious about eliminating TB then we have to get some fundamental things right such as increased support for patient care that efficiently helps patients complete all of their treatment," Sara Browne, Professor of Clinical Medicine at the University of California San Diego and trial leader, was quoted as saying in the article.

According to the article, the vast majority of TB deaths occur in developing nations, led by India.

Disposable Glucose Sensor Delivers Results In Five Seconds

Gluco-Chaser¡¯s disposable strip blood glucose monitoring (BGM) prototype sensor with non-enzymatic electrochemistry achieves a five-second glucose reading from human whole blood. According to the company, it does not compromise the accuracy of its proprietary nanoporous sensor technology (Error Grid Analysis A+B 98%; N=100). Additionally, the prototype sensor proved to work accurately calibration-free for five days in animal tests.

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