131335Point of care device to differentiate between gram positive and gram negative bacteria - an aid to diagnosis and antibiotic therapyClosedFeasibility StudiesInnovate UKThe rise in antibiotic resistance found in bacteria is a serious problem for the present and future treatment of patients. Current forecasts suggest that major disease causing bacteria will become antibiotic resistant in the next 20 years. The current methods of detection rely on the use of laboratory based methods to grow the bacteria and can take between twenty-four hours and a week before a definitive result is obtained. Antibiotics are often prescribed before the results are obtained, risking their incorrect use and thereby increasing the problem of antibiotic resistance. What if a doctor could tell the type of bacterial infection by a simple test during the consultation? The correct decision as to which medication is best to use and whether antibiotics are needed at all can be made. The proposed study is aimed at producing a simple, easy to use and sensitive point of care device to achieve these objectives.