Diagnostics for Communicable and Infectious Disease

Maternova curates a set of diagnostics (rapid tests and laboratory culture tests) that detect many of the leading causes of morbidity, specifically for maternal and neonatal health.  Syphilis and HIV can be passed from mother to infant, Group B Strep is often a cause of sepsis yet notoriously under-tested globally. 

Our laboratory culture tests are all-in-one cassettes that were designed for maximum ease of use in a field setting. 

Rapid diagnostic tests, also known as point-of-care tests, aim to detect various diseases quickly, without using any additional equipment. In the past, diagnosis of various infections may have required sending blood samples to laboratories, with a long wait time for results. Moreover, these tests were expensive, and therefore, not available to everyone. With the advent of rapid diagnostics, faster and cheaper results can be obtained from a single drop of blood, urine or even saliva.

These tests were specially designed for use in low-resource settings and remote areas with limited access to specialized laboratory equipment. Our rapid diagnostic tests are reliable, accurate, inexpensive and easy to use, with minimal training required. A new urine test exists for schistosomiasis and for procalcitonin, a marker of infection and sepsis. Another rapid test available at Maternova is ThermoSpot, a non-invasive infant hypothermia indicator.

One of our main goals is distributing scalable technologies and innovative health solutions that will effectively improve health in developing nations. Oftentimes, the earlier an infection is diagnosed, the more likely it is to be successfully managed or even cured. These rapid diagnostic tests allow quick, highly sensitive and specific results in a field setting, allowing proper treatment and triage to occur.