Affinity Biosensors, a provider in the field of healthcare diagnostics, announced its LifeScale AST system received FDA clearance, providing healthcare professionals with a tool for managing bacteremia by providing antibiotic susceptibility test (AST) results with improved speed.

LifeScale AST for Rapid Antibiotic Assessment

The LifeScale AST system is an automated benchtop system that uses advanced technology to rapidly assess key antibiotics to determine which will be most effective in the treatment of dangerous bloodstream infections. 

The system is designed to fit seamlessly into existing clinical workflows, and features simple, chemistry-free sample preparation and processing, high throughput and cost-effective operation, convenient room-temperature consumables storage, and compatibility with existing organism identification systems, the company says. 

Improving Patient Outcomes and Supporting Antibiotic Stewardship 

LifeScale AST aims to empower healthcare providers to make informed decisions that will improve patient outcomes, reduce the duration and cost of treatment, and support antibiotic stewardship.

Key features of the LifeScale AST system include:

  1. Rapid results: LifeScale AST delivers results in under 5 hours, significantly reducing the time needed to select the most appropriate antibiotic therapy for patients. The system tests a suite of antibiotics, including those targeting the most dangerous multi-drug resistant bacteria.
  2. High accuracy: LifeScale AST uses population profiling, in which a microfluidic sensor measures the masses of thousands of individual bacteria. This unique technology enables fast AST results while maintaining high standards for accuracy.
  3. Streamlined workflow: LifeScale AST’s user-friendly interface and automated processes simplify laboratory operations, enabling healthcare professionals to focus on patient care.

“We are very proud of achieving FDA clearance for the LifeScale AST system,” says Ken Babcock, PhD, CEO of Affinity Biosensors. “This revolutionary technology has the potential to transform how infections associated with sepsis are treated. We are very grateful to our dedicated team and partners who have worked tirelessly to bring LifeScale AST to market. We are especially gratified to witness this performance borne out in our collaborations with healthcare institutions nationwide.”