US scientists link mitochondrial DNA levels with severity of COVID-19
21 January 2021 | News Mitochondrial DNA levels were much higher in patients who eventually were admitted to the ICU, intubated or died
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Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St Louis have shown that a relatively simple and rapid blood test can predict within a day of a hospital admission which patients with COVID-19 are at highest risk of severe complications or death.
The study, published Jan 14 in JCI Insight, involved nearly 100 patients newly admitted to the hospital with COVID-19.
The blood test measures levels of mitochondrial DNA, a unique type of DNA molecule that normally resides inside the energy factories of cells.
New Blood Test Predicts COVID-9 Recovery by Karishma Abhishek on January 17, 2021 at 6:27 PM
Developing sudden failure of organs that leads to various complications like respiratory or kidney inefficiency or requiring other intensive care remains one of the challenging aspects of COVID-19 that may cause death even in young patients.
With an aim to explore which hospitalized patients can get into such complications, involving nearly 100 patients newly admitted to the hospital with COVID-19, a simple and rapid blood test has been formulated by scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.
Within a day of a hospital admission, this blood test can predict the risk of patients with COVID-19 who are highly prone to develop severe complications or death, published in the journal JCI Insight.
Industry News: Abbott receives FDA 510(k) clearance for the first rapid handheld blood test for concussions
11 Jan 2021
Abbott has received 510(k) clearance for the first rapid handheld traumatic brain injury (TBI) blood test, which is designed to help clinicians assess individuals with suspected mild TBIs, including concussions. The test will run on Abbott s handheld i-STAT™ Alinity™ platform. Tests results are available within 15 minutes after plasma is placed in the test cartridge.
TBIs, including concussions, are an alteration in brain function caused by an external force. This test measures specific proteins present in the blood after a TBI. A negative result on this test can be used to rule out the need for a head CT scan, a common tool used to diagnose concussions. For those who test positive, this test result complements CT scans to help clinicians evaluate whether someone has a TBI.