Mobile Phone-Based Device Could Save Lives By Offering Greater Access To Pneumonia Detection

By: 
Gary Boas
July 31, 2015
Technology developed by the Center's Qianqian Fang and colleagues would expand access to pulse oximeters for pneumonia detection in the developing world.

A new technology developed by the Martinos Center’s Qianqian Fang and colleagues has been named a leading innovation in Reimagining Global Health, the inaugural report of the Innovation Countdown 2030 initiative.

Pneumonia is a leading cause of death in children under the age of five. Health care workers can detect pneumonia by measuring oxygen levels in the body using devices called pulse oximeters, which determine the blood oxygen level by measuring light transmission through the body. But many people living in the developing world don’t always have access to these basic diagnostic tools, especially newborns, babies and mothers — the world’s most vulnerable group.

Fang and colleagues have devised a new type of oximeter that uses a low-cost mobile phone attachment to easily and accurately measure oxygen levels with no contact with the body. The technology, development of which has been funded by the USAID Saving Lives at Birth program, could significantly expand access to pulse oximeters in clinics and hospitals. According to the report, this could lead to a 6% reduction in deaths due to pneumonia over the next 15 years — an estimated 772,000 child lives saved.

When fully developed, the device will be considerably less expensive than existing pulse oximeters because, from a hardware perspective, it requires only a paper color filter added to the cell phone – the cost of which is “nearly zero,” Fang said. Also, the non-contact measurement means there is greatly reduced need for disinfectant, which is rarely available in resource-poor regions.

“Without disposable parts and consumable materials,” Fang continued, “our approach is expected to have much lower long-term operating costs compared to currently available low-cost pulse oximeters.”

Innovation Countdown 2030 is an initiative to identify and showcase lifesaving innovations with great promise to transform global health by 2030 and to help accelerate progress toward the new health targets proposed in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Reimagining Global Health was officially launched at the 3rd UN Financing for Development conference in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on Monday, July 13 and is available for download on IC2030.org.