710467Home monitoring device for self-monitoring and control of COPD exacerbationsClosedGRD Proof of ConceptInnovate UKWe propose to develop a small, fully automatic, user-friendly device to detect lung inflammation to be used at home by COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) patients themselves. The device will use exhaled breath with H2O2 as the marker. It will allow COPD patients to share the results with healthcare staff remotely and make it easier for people from COPD risk groups to be screened. Current diagnosis and monitoring of COPD are typically based on clinical examination, spirometery, forced expiratory volumes and lung capacity measurements. A few commercial devices for detection of NO (Nitric Oxide) in exhaled breath exist, but NO detection generally requires a controlled exhalation, making it unsuitable for most COPD patients and for selfmonitoring. In the UK, there are estimated to be 6 million COPD sufferers, but the European COPD Coalition states that only an estimated 900,000 (1.5% of the population of the UK) are correctly diagnosed.The cost to the NHS of COPD prescriptions and hospital admissions in 2010 was £578 million (NICE Costing Report 2011). We estimate that cost savings of 10% of this would be achievable after 18 months if our device was adopted. As exhaled H2O2 does not require a controlled exhalation, H202 is an ideal marker for home monitoring of COPD. We have successfully demonstrated real-time assessment of lung inflammation using exhaled H202 in clinical settings in a pilot study at the UEA Medical School. The study demonstrated that exhaled breath H202 measurement can be applied to provide exact real-time analysis, and confirmed that exacerbating COPD patients display significantly higher H2O2 values.Patients found H202 sampling easy and preferable to alternative solutions, especially during exacerbations, where breathlessness made spirometry and NO measurements difficult.By developing the concept into an "all in one" fully automatic smaller device we will enable patients and physicians to detect lung inflammation far earlier.