Save time, save lives: Early detection of sepsis in pre-term babies
Students develop early sepsis warning technology for pre-term babies.
A group of biomedical engineering students have created a monitoring device that helps medical staff identify and respond to the early symptoms of life-threatening sepsis in pre-term babies.
The device, which is designed for babies in intensive care, detects sepsis up to 24 hours earlier than it otherwise would be.
Developed by Tiffany Chang, Stork Hu, Teri Nolan, Marko Ruslim and Sarah Warren as part of the BioDesign Innovation subject, the device continuously monitors the subtle differences between a baby’s core temperature and peripheral temperature (taken from an arm or leg), which is an early symptom of sepsis.
The team’s ‘Save Time, Save Lives: Early Detection of Sepsis in Pre-Term Babies’ capstone project won the Endeavour People’s Choice Award at the end of year Endeavour Exhibition for Faculty of Engineering and Information Systems students. The project also won third prize in the Road to Endeavour Awards and the Telstra Customer and Community Impact Award.