Monitoring Sepsis with Bedside Biosensors

A potential new hand-held device could monitor post-operative and trauma patients for early warning signs of septic shock.

The SpheroSense device detects low levels of bacteria that circulate in the bloodstream prior to the onset of sepsis by tracking the concentration of specific protein markers in patients' bloodstreams, providing continuous real-time monitoring of the patient's condition. When needed, medical personnel can then intervene with antibiotics and anti-inflammatories before organs are damaged. At the heart of the system is a new type of miniature optical device, the microcavity surface plasmon resonance (MSPR) sensor, which is able to detect and quantify molecular binding in very small volumes of a sample.

Proof of concept of the MSPR has already been demonstrated, and the initial focus will be on developing a laboratory research instrument, since this does not require approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Subsequently, the company will develop products for the clinical point-of-care (POC) market using the same technologies. The initial clinical focus will be on patients in intensive care units (ICUs) who, because of a large number of intravenous lines, tubes, and catheters, are at high risk for bloodstream infection. This would reduce the likelihood of death or disability and prevent many expensive stays in ICUs.

The device is being developed by SpheroSense Technologies (Bloomington, IN, USA) formed by researchers at the Biocomplexity Institute at Indiana University (Bloomington, IN, USA).

"Our sensor is significantly smaller and more sensitive than existing related technologies,” said one of the founders, Professor James A. Glazier. "Unlike most existing technologies, the MSPR sensor can detect small molecules, drugs, proteins, viruses, DNA, and RNA. The sensor can be manufactured inexpensively enough to be disposable, and it can be integrated with microfluidics into instruments that allow sample conditioning and high-throughput screening of multiple compounds or pathogens on the same chip.”

"The incidence of sepsis exceeds that of colon cancer, breast cancer, or AIDS. There are about a million cases of sepsis every year in the United States, and the mortality rate is more than 30 percent,” continued Professor Glazier. "In 10 years, we will regard continuous monitoring of blood chemistry as routine and essential and such monitoring will improve therapy and save lives and money.”


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