Problem being addressed[edit | edit source]
Tuberculosis is the second largest infectious cause of death in the world. It is highly prevalent in low resource settings because the equipment necessary, fluorescence microscopes, is high cost ($40,000 USD), leading to difficulty in properly diagnosing the infection.
Detailed description of the solution[edit | edit source]
The Global Focus Microscope analyses sputum smears (saliva and mucus mixture coughed up by a patient) to detect the presence of tuberculosis and malaria. The device is portable (small size and weight), is battery operated, has up to 1000x magnification, and is a low cost option ($240 USD to manufacture).
Designed by[edit | edit source]
- Designed by: Andrew Miller - Rice University, Houston, TX
- Manufacturer (if different): 3rd Stone Design
- Manufacturer location: San Rafael, California
When and where it was tested/implemented[edit | edit source]
Tested in Tehran, Iran in 2010.
Funding Source[edit | edit source]
Rice University received a $2.2 million grant from Howard Hughes Medical Institute (2006)
References[edit | edit source]
Peer-reviewed publication[edit | edit source]
Andrew R. Miller, Gregory L. Davis, Z. Maria Oden, Mohamad Reza Razavi, Abolfazi Fateh, Morteza Ghazanfari, Farid Abdolrahimi, Shahin Poorazar, Fatemeh Sakhaie, Randall J. Olsen, Ahmad Reza Bahrmand, Mark C. Pierce, Edward A. Graviss, Rebecca Richards-Kortum. (2010) Portable, Battery-Operated, Low-Cost, Bright Field and Fluorescence Microscope. Retrieved July 3, 2014 from [1]
Other internally generated reports[edit | edit source]
Rice University. (2011). Global Focus Microscope. Retrieved July 3, 2014 from [2]
3rd Stone Design Inc. Global Focus Microscope. Retrieved July 3, 2014 from [3]
Externally generated reports[edit | edit source]
Ben Coxworth. (2010). US $240 TB-detecting microscope on par with $40,000 devices. Retrieved July 3, 2014 from [4]
Priya Sabu. (2011). Cutting the price tag for microscopy diagnostics. Retrieved July 3, 2014 from [5]
Dr. Margaret Chan. (2010) Despite progress TB is the second biggest infectious killer of adults. Retrieved July 2, 2014 from [6]