BiliSpec is a low-cost, hand-held, battery-powered reader invented by Rice University students to diagnose jaundice by immediately quantifying serum bilirubin levels from a small drop of whole blood. A clinical study conducted in Malawi showed that BiliSpec has comparable accuracy to standard laboratory tests that are unavailable in most African hospitals. Because BiliSpec tests cost about 5 cents apiece, the reader could bring jaundice testing within reach for cash-strapped hospitals in sub-Saharan Africa. BiliSpec is one component of a 17-piece neonatal package called NEST, short for Newborn Essential Solutions and Technologies, that is designed specifically for African hospitals by NEST360°, an international team of scientists, doctors and global health experts
source: Rice University
