DIABLO 2 version 1
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Point of care diagnosis of gastrointestinal disease using laser spectroscopy (DIABLO 2)
IRAS ID
263305
Contact name
Christopher Walton
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Cranfield University
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
WVA3007N, Budget code
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 2 months, days
Research summary
We will investigate Clostridium difficile infection (CDI), a bowel infection producing catastrophic diarrhoea and which can prove fatal, especially in the elderly and others with a poor immune response. It has been estimated that 3-5% of the population carry C. difficile bacteria without suffering any ill effects, and this makes management of the disease in hospitals difficult.
Current tests for CDI use traditional laboratory "wet chemistry" methods, with limited diagnostic performance and a lead time measured in hours. Delayed diagnosis can lead to patients being unnecessarily isolated from wards or treated unnecessarily with antibiotics, which contributes to the development of antimicrobial resistance.
Nurses report being able to detect an outbreak of CDI on a ward by the presence of a characteristic smell, and microbiologists are able to smell the difference between different bacteria grown in culture. Variation in the levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted from a range of human samples (e.g. breath, blood, urine) are known to be associated with metabolic status and have been linked to particular diseases. In an earlier study, we found several VOCs produced by faeces which were associated with a diagnosis of CDI. We now want to expand and refine our earlier work by using an increased number of samples which will allow us to establish the applicability of our findings across different age and gender groups. In doing so, we will use actual clinical samples which have been referred to a chemical pathology laboratory for CDI testing. This will allow us to test the validity of our approach using a realistic sample stream.
This is part of a larger study in which we are developing a laser-based instrument to measure faecal VOCs with the ultimate aim of enabling CDI diagnosis at the bedside within minutes.
REC name
London - Bloomsbury Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
19/LO/1505
Date of REC Opinion
4 Oct 2019
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion