Kalium Health developing world’s first at-home blood potassium test

At first glance Kalium’s integrated device-software platform resembles blood glucose monitor used by people living with diabetes. Common to both devices is the requirement to place a drop of blood onto a strip that is then analysed by the reader.

Kalium CEO Tom Collings said the single-use test strip, made of conventional plastics and conductive polymers, contains the electrochemical sensor; the handheld monitor powers the sensor and receives an electrical response. This response is converted to a final readout via Kalium Health’s algorithm which has been fine-tuned based on hundreds of thousands of data points.

“The design of the test aims to minimise the amount of materials used so as to achieve an unbeatable cost,” said Collings. “This also helps to reduce the environmental footprint of the test – which is hugely net-positive as the test replaces conventional methods involving patients travelling to clinics, blood samples being transported to labs and the plastic consumables necessary for a venous blood draw.”