Battery & Electrification Technology

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Medical Diagnostic Device Made from Paper is Powered Only by User's Touch

A new paper-based diagnostic device developed at Purdue University  detects biomarkers and identifies diseases by performing electrochemical analyses - powered only by the user's touch - and reads out the color-coded test results, making it easy for non-experts to understand. Self-powered, paper-based electrochemical devices (or SPEDs) are designed for sensitive diagnostics at the 'point-of-care' - when care is delivered to patients in regions with limited access to sophisticated medical equipment. "We hope these devices will serve untrained people located in remote villages or military bases to test for a variety of diseases without requiring any source of electricity, clean water, or additional equipment," said Ramses V. Martinez, an assistant professor of industrial and biomedical engineering at Purdue University.