A total of €12 million (nearly £9.5 million) has been invested by the European Commission in a new pan-European partnership that will design an advanced diagnostic tool for the detection and control of coeliac disease.
It is expected that the development of the technologies involved and their combination in a single product represent a significant advance in diagnostics technology, which has the potential to be applied to the detection of a range of other conditions, including insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus and rheumatoid arthritis.
According to a recent study, only 12.5% of people with coeliac disease are correctly diagnosed, and research has shown that the average length of time for someone to be diagnosed with the condition from the onset of their symptoms is 13 years.
The project aims to develop a POC screening device for implementation at the primary care level. The proposed disposable microchip will be used in a portable handheld device, which will have embedded communications abilities, allowing direct storage of test results on a patient’s electronic medical record. This will enable easy followup, management and monitoring of the patient’s response to withdrawal of gluten from their diet.
www.coeliac.org.uk