New Diabetes Test Potential
Starkville, MS-Two Mississippi State University (MSU) scientists have
developed a Breathalyzer-like device that
measures symptoms of diabetes in a person’s breath.
From just one breath, this highly sophisticated sensory device
instantly determines a person’s status: completely diabetes-free, or in
the primary or more advanced stages of the disease.
John Plodinec and Chuji Wang have applied for a patent with their
prototype and are currently seeking to pair with a commercial entity to
release the device in hospitals and clinics.
Wang, a physicist and native of China, imagines that this instrument
could be installed in public places, even a shopping mall. His partner
Plodinec told the University Relations Department of MSU that the device
could be utilized in revealing poor treatment of diabetes, or it could
serve to provide information for other diseases.
It is speculated that of the 17 million Americans suffering of
diabetes, 6 million have not been diagnosed. Obesity is the top cause of
the development of diabetes, and Mississippi ranks in the top ten states
for obesity and diabetes, according to state and federal statistics.
The Breathalyzer measures the acetone in a breath in order to
determine a person’s status with diabetes. The new, highly sensitive
technology of Cavity Ring-Down Spectroscopy makes it possible to
detect the concentration levels of the acetone, which are higher in
diabetes sufferers.
June 10, 2004
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