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Acolyte Biomedica Ltd Launches
BacLite® Rapid MRSA Test - New high speed test promises to help prevent spread
of MRSA
May 31st 2005 Porton
Down, UK – Acolyte Biomedica Ltd, the company spun out of the MoD Defence
Science and Technology Laboratories (Dstl) at Porton Down, has announced the
launch of the BacLite Rapid MRSA test. Salisbury District Hospital takes
delivery of the first system at the end of May. Giving same-day results, the
BacLite Rapid MRSA test will allow hospitals to screen patients for the presence
of the superbug. This information will enable infection control teams to act
quickly to prevent a hospital acquired infection.
Healthcare acquired infections, of which MRSA is the most significant, are
estimated to cause 5000 deaths in the UK each year and by being able to act
quickly, hospitals can reduce significantly the incidence of mortality and
morbidity. In addition MRSA costs the NHS around £1 billion p.a., so reducing
the incidence of the infection is poised to have a major financial impact.
The final evaluation of the BacLite system at three UK laboratories including
those at Barts & The London and Salisbury District NHS Trusts, showed the test
can achieve in 5 hours what current microbiological methods take 2 days to
deliver. Commenting on the launch, Dr Bill Mullen, the company CEO said “We
expect this test to offer a rapid & cost effective screening method at an
important time in the fight against MRSA”.
The test has the same performance as current culture based methods but delivers
the results in hours rather than days. In a multi centre trial of 1377 nasal
swabs the sensitivity of the test was 93.4% and specificity was 95.8%. The study
illustrates the confidence that medical staff could have when using BacLite
Rapid MRSA test information for admitting patients; the probability that a
negative result was correct (negative predictive value) was over 99%.
www.acolytebiomedica.com
-ENDS-
Note to editors:
BacLite®
The BacLite system uses AK rapid® technology developed by the Defence Science
and Technology Laboratories (Dstl), an agency of the Ministry of Defence at
Porton Down, Wiltshire.
MRSA screening.
Data from a German study (Clin. Microb. Infect. 2005, 11 (6), 457-65) to be
published in June reports that a properly implemented screening program can
reduce MRSA by over 50%. The kind of rigorous surveillance they implemented is
the backbone of the so called “Seek and Destroy” approach, so successfully used
in the Netherlands. In the UK and Eire the combination of high bed occupancy and
very infectious strains of the superbug strongly suggests that traditional
screening methods may be too slow for maximum effect. Rapid testing is growing
as a method by which some UK hospitals face the challenge.
Acolyte Biomedica Ltd was formed in February 2000 and signed its first agreement
with Dstl (then DERA) later that year. The Company has received venture funding
from Angle PLC, BioProjects International, Porton Capital and Dstl. It employs
22 staff in its laboratories at Porton Down, Wiltshire, UK.
Product enquiries
Acolyte Biomedica – Glyn Colebrooke, Commercial Manager
t: +44 (0)1980 551320 e:
gcolebrooke@acolytebiomedica.com
Media enquiries
Alto Marketing Limited - David Robinson
+44 (0)1489 557672 Email:
davidr@alto-marketing.com
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