Hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) remain a significant source of life-threatening illness in intensive care, demanding fast and accurate diagnosis to ensure effective treatment. Hospital-acquired pneumonia alone costs the UK’s NHS an estimated GBP 1.5 billion annually and consumes nearly a million bed days. Now, a new test aims to deliver rapid, definitive detection of respiratory infections and pneumonia in critically ill patients, enabling rapid selection of the most effective treatment.

EDX Medical (Cambridge, UK) is working with clinical and academic partners to develop the ARDP (Acute Respiratory Distress & Pneumonia) ICU test. Licensed from Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Cambridge University, and UKHSA via Cambridge Enterprise, the test is designed to cover the widest range of respiratory pathogens—including bacteria, viruses, and mycoplasma—in a single panel. It utilizes direct lung lavage sample analysis, eliminating microbial culture delays.

Once the test is completed, the results will be read using digital technology and made available to ICU doctors in 60 seconds, removing the wait time for a manual test result. Additionally, pandemic respiratory infections also occur on a cyclical basis, and being able to detect known pathogens and rapidly adapt assays to deal with emerging pathogens was critical during the recent COVID-19 pandemic. This rapid test capability will better equip ICUs for any future pandemics.

EDX Medical will partner with the Intensive Care Unit at Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust to support the further advancement of this highly precise test, which identifies the DNA or RNA of the microbes that cause lung infections in critically ill patients. Under an existing collaboration with Thermo Fisher Scientific (Waltham, MA, USA), EDX Medical will also develop and validate a kit version of the test that can then be provided to other hospitals and laboratories in the UK and Europe, subject to regulatory approval.

“This is a massively important project which will result in a world-class test that will demonstrate the immediate impact of new clinical diagnostics in frontline NHS hospitals, saving both lives and resources,” said Professor Sir Chris Evans, founder of EDX Medical.

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