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Medical diagnostics for neonates in the developing world

Summary

There is an urgent clinical need to develop diagnostic devices to assess the health of newborns. For example the World Health Organisation estimates that malnutrition contributes to more than half of child deaths in the developing world (Bryce et. al., Lancet, 2005) and calls for a low cost device to measure malnutrition.  While in both developing and the developed world jaundice is common in over 70% of newborns but trained examiners make poor estimations of severity (Madlon-Kay et. al. Paediatrics 1997). Devices exist for assessing these conditions however they are typically too expensive for the developing world. With the School of Public Health and RPA, this project involves assessing basic physical measurements to identify the optimal low cost methods for assessing the health of newborns and developing medical devices to implement these methods.

Supervisors

Professor Alistair McEwan, Associate Professor Craig Jin, Professor Philip Leong.

Research location

Electrical and Computer Engineering

Program type

Masters/PHD

Synopsis

There is an urgent clinical need to develop diagnostic devices to assess the health of newborns. For example the World Health Organisation estimates that malnutrition contributes to more than half of child deaths in the developing world (Bryce et. al., Lancet, 2005) and calls for a low cost device to measure malnutrition.  While in both developing and the developed world jaundice is common in over 70% of newborns but trained examiners make poor estimations of severity (Madlon-Kay et. al. Paediatrics 1997). Devices exist for assessing these conditions however they are typically too expensive for the developing world. With the School of Public Health and RPA, this project involves assessing basic physical measurements to identify the optimal low cost methods for assessing the health of newborns and developing medical devices to implement these methods.

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Opportunity ID

The opportunity ID for this research opportunity is 947

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