The Canadian Intellectual Property Office has granted Epinex Diagnostics a patent for its Rapid Test for Glycated Albumin (CA 2510277). The Epinex G1A? Rapid Diabetes Monitoring Index Test is a monthly, point-of-care (POC) immunoassay system for diabetes monitoring and the world’s first rapid test to use glycated albumin (GA) as a biomarker. The test gives the user a ratio of GA to total albumin, with high levels of GA indicative of diabetes complications. Due to the 3-4 week turnover rate of albumin, the G1A? test is ideal for monthly monitoring of diabetes.
According to the Canadian Diabetes Association, approximately 9 million Canadians, or 26% of the total population, live with diabetes or prediabetes and nearly one million of them are unaware that they have the disease. In addition, given the projected increase in the prevalence of diabetes in Canada and the aging population, the economic impact of the disease and its associated complications will increase by 180%, from $6.3 billion in 2000 to $16.9 billion by 2020, according to predictions by Informetrica.
Currently, diabetics monitor themselves daily with multiple blood glucose tests, and test for HbA1c every 4-6 months. Scientific studies have demonstrated that current monitoring methods for type 2 diabetics (95% of all diabetics), are ineffective due to low compliance rates, physiological interference with test accuracy, and delayed time frames for therapeutic intervention. The G1A? test is unaffected by factors that impede current monitoring methods and could potentially fulfill the unmet medical need for effective diabetes monitoring for millions of individuals suffering from the disease.
“Monthly monitoring with the G1A? test could help prevent the onset of chronic complications such as blindness, kidney failure, and heart disease, thus leading to an overall improvement in quality of life for diabetics and a significant reduction in healthcare costs for the Canadian economy,” explains Asad Zaidi, Epinex CEO.
About Epinex Diagnostics, Inc.Epinex Diagnostics is a private medical device company that develops innovative point-of-care diagnostic tests. Follow the company on Twitter and Facebook for the latest developments and visit www.epinex.com for more information.
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