Medical Diagnostic Division
Atherton's
Diagnostic Division has rapidly grown around a core
proprietary technology that promises to bring
about revolutionary change to the field of medical
diagnostics. Atherton's diagnostic technology has
enabled the non-invasive detection of
disease-causing pathogens, executed within a matter of a few
seconds. This technology has been leveraged to address,
on the one hand, the needs of the medically certifiable
diagnostic device market and, on the other hand, the
mass consumer market seeking to protect itself from
the common pathogens of everyday life. Our first
device in the medically certified category is a product called
VIRASCAN while our drive in the consumer mass market is being
spearheaded by the Stay Safe STD Alert device from Atherton
Diagnostics subsidiary, Stay Safe Technologies.
Key links:
VIRASCAN
STAY SAFE STD ALERT
FUTURE
DEVICES
PUBLICATIONS
VIRASCAN
A Medically Certified Device that
Non-Invasively Detects the HIV-1 Virus
with Remarkable
Accuracy and Ultra High Sensitivity
Atherton's
first device using its core technology
is called VIRASCAN. VIRASCAN enables the
detection of the deadly HIV-1 virus with an incredibly high
sensitivity of up to a 1000-fold compared to standard laboratory
diagnostic methods.
HIV-1/AIDS, a disease that
has acquired pandemic proportions, has already affected large
fractions of populations in sub-Saharan South
African and other developing nations. The official infection
rate in Sub-Saharan Africa is assumed to be approximately 24.5 % and
the total number of HIV infected is estimated to be approximately 28
million. Atherton knows these figures to be frighteningly
underestimated. The real numbers are much much higher than the
official estimates.
The problem in these countries is exacerbated by the lack of resources needed
to pay for expensive diagnostic laboratories and therapeutic
measures required to diagnose and treat the masses. These
nations, in particular, stands to radically gain
from VIRASCAN. As a simple device, rapidly
deployable in doctor's offices and
hospitals at relatively minimal cost, VIRASCAN addresses
the challenging problem of HIV-1 diagnosis at the
very grassroot level in countries with serious medical
infrastructure problems. Clinical trials of this product are
being scheduled to start in different countries in the near
future - these countries include Thailand, South Africa and
China.
Key Features of Virascan:
Testing and
Accuracy:
Results using the device can be verified
using standard laboratory methods (immune-enzyme analysis,
polymerase-chain reaction PCR). It has an accuracy of 95%,
which is substantially higher than the current laboratory methods.
In fact, the 5% discrepancy between the results of the device and
standard laboratory methods is attributed to the lack of accuracy of
standard laboratory methods. In other words, the comparative
measurement of the accuracy of the device is
constrained by the limit to the accuracy of current
methods, that have relatively large standard errors of their
own.
Blazing Speed:
The time required to scan for the HIV-1 virus is approximately 15 to 30 seconds.
Ultra
Sensitivity: The sensitivity to the HIV-1 virus is up to 1,000-fold greater than that of the existing laboratory methods.
Non-Invasive
Technology:
The
device is non-invasive and does not require the operator to draw blood or take any other samples from the patient. This makes a diagnostic procedure using the device substantially safer and sanitary for the patient and the operator alike. It is extremely easy to use and does not require highly skilled and high-waged personnel. A one-day training course is sufficient for most operators.
Fields of
Application:
Virascan has its primary use in any
medical office, hospital or clinic in developed or developing
countries. It will be particularly useful in third world
countries where the disease is rampant, but standard, safe or
sanitary laboratory methods are not easily available or are too
complicated to be of practical use.
STAY SAFE STD
ALERT
An Over-the-Counter Diagnostic Device That
Detects Pathogens that Cause
Sexually Transmitted Diseases -
Available to the Mass Market Consumer
One out of
every two individuals on Earth will be or already have been, at
some point in their lives, infected with a Sexually Transmitted
Disease (STD). Most of these diseases are
insidious, slow growing, chronic and progressively debilitating
in nature, massively impacting the quality of life of the
infected individuals. Some of these infections can be
deadly, such as HIV-1/AIDS.
The often unnoticed
infections coupled with the associated stigma of acquiring a
sexually transmitted disease, worsens the condition of the
individuals and facilitates the spread of the disease.
Virtually everyone in the world is affected in some way or the
other, and the ability to protect oneself from contagion
would be of paramount interest to most of the sexually
mature population in the world.
Atherton's diagnostic technology has been
adapted to create a simple handheld diagnostic device,
purchasable over-the-counter, known as the Stay Safe STD Alert
device. Just as a contact thermometer measures
temperature, the Stay Safe STD Alert
device detects the presence of a sexually transmitted pathogen
and alerts the individual of a possible infection. This
early warning system will encourage the individual to seek medical
attention early, at a time when it is easier to control the
infection. At present, the Stay Safe STD Alert device can
detect the presence of the HIV-1/AIDS virus, Chlamydia and Gonorrhea
- three of the most dangerous and commonly encountered sexually
transmitted diseases.
For more information,
visit: www.staysafetechnologies.com
FUTURE DEVICES
Atherton Diagnostics
has launched a separate company called Stay Safe Technologies whose
mission is to launch into the mass market consumer diagnostic
devices such as the Stay Safe STD Alert device, that can detect key
disease-causing pathogens. One such device that detects
the highly prevalent Staphylococcus bacterial family is currently
being tested.
The company will also
introduce similar pathogen screening devices that can be used
in different scenarios, such as at border crossings and
international airports, that would be particularly useful during
times of pandemic infections that may affect individuals, livestock
or agricultural products.
PUBLICATION
COVERS: (click
to magnify)
(PDF versions of these publications are available
by request only. Please contact us if you would like
more information) |
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