Tool/Machine

Skin is the largest organ and forms a protective barrier against the external environment. At the same time, skin is very vulnerable. When severe skin loss occurs, normal wound healing cannot reconstitute the skin, requiring multiple interventions. The high cost and elevated morbidity associated with current clinical procedures, especially in developing countries, motivated innovators at University of Toronto to develop a bold skin printing approach.

The Burn Survival Kit (BSK) is an inexpensive, sustainable solution to burns in low-income countries. The kit contains oral rehydration salts for restoring lost fluids, a silver nanotubule dressing to prevent infection and a connection to a burn unit via a text messaging database. End-users are guided by a wordless instruction manual.

OneBreath aims to commercialize a high-precision, highly reliable, low-cost, mechanical ventilator to fill a critical healthcare gap in India, where respiratory illness is a leading cause of hospitalization and death.  Over 50% of the world's pneumonia deaths occur in India, where ventilators remain out of reach for many hospitals.

The World Health Organization estimates that 20 to 50 million people each year are injured in traffic accidents. About 90% occur in low- and middle-income countries, where resources for treatment are insufficient. Commercial power tools are widely available but expensive ($30,000 or more) surgical equipment is often unavailable, while donated surgical drills fail in low-resource settings because technical support and replacement parts are unavailable. The end result: permanent disability for many.

Outbreaks of Tuberculosis (TB) are hard to prevent and control. As drugs and vaccines are not always effective routes, this project proposes a method to trap and kill the microbes. With nanotechnology, a state-of-the-art approach to prevent the wide spread of the Tuberculosis (TB) bacteria by physically, chemically and biologically specific filtration is becoming a reality. The pilot study focuses on the fabrication of ultrathin, light weight and disposable antibacterial nanofilter into a filtration system. This technology would be transferred to small businesses as a business model.

Early detection of Multidrug-resistant TB can save lives. However, laboratory resources for treatment monitoring are not available in many low-resource environments. Studies have shown that cough frequency changes in patients receiving effective TB treatment but remains unchanged in patients with MDR-TB. Universidad Nacional de Ingenieria is developing software and hardware that enables a smartphone to record and count coughs during first-line tuberculosis (TB) treatment, offering a way to measure the effectiveness of treatment and to identify MDR-TB cases.

WHO estimates that 10% to 30% of all patients in developing country health care facilities acquire an infection. An innovative sticker for hospital surfaces developed by Lunanos Inc. changes colour when a cleaner is applied and fades color after a predetermined period of time, helping staff track and ensure cleanliness of equipment and other frequently touched surfaces.

The proposed idea is to use a permanent make-up (or tattoo) device, a proven technology of the cosmetic sector, to a) target intra-dermal administration of an anti-cutaneous leishmaniasis therapy, and b) deliver and concentrate the drug in professional phagocytes, the exclusive replicative niche of the Leishmania parasites"

Dengue, a disease transmitted mostly from mosquito bites, is a leading cause of serious illness and death in developing countries, including the Philippines. Dengue prevention and control solely depends on effective vector control measures and/or detection methods, but dengue detection kits are not affordable or always accessible.   Current techniques require a relatively high level of technical skill, equipment, and are time-consuming.

In Tanzania, the Ifakara Health Institute will develop anti-mosquito footwear material that slowly releases repellents from the friction of walking.  A key advantage: no compliance or change in habits required. Mosquitoes mostly bite people on their feet and ankles. We propose the use of footwear fitted with repellent-impregnated material,to deter blood-seeking mosquitoes from people during the times when and where existing control measures are ineffective.