This article was taken from the June 2012 issue of Wired magazine. Be the first to read Wired's articles in print before they're posted online, and get your hands on loads of additional content by subscribing online.
Most medical equipment used in the developed world is too expensive or energy-intensive to be useful in rural clinics. The smart answer, according to Matthew Callaghan, codeveloper of the OneBreath ventilator, is "reverse innovation". Here are some examples.
<span class="s1">Easy-to-use, low-cost ventilator
OneBreath is a simple and cheap ventilator for use anywhere.
Matthew Callaghan and his team at UC-San Francisco use software rather than hardware to measure patients' airflow.
Awaiting approval, tinyurl.com/cf3a6ee
Anaemia screening device Mumbai-based Myshkin Ingawale's Touch Hb carries out a simple and non-invasive test that offers non-medical staff the means to detect and tackle anaemia, still a life-threatening condition.
Currently in prototype, biosense.in
Smartphone-based blood-cell counter Flow cytometers count microscopic particles, such as blood cells and chromosomes, in a sample. They usually cost tens of thousands of pounds but this version will be only $5 (£3.20).
Currently in prototype, innovate.ee.ucla.edu
Stripped-down, portable ECG machine GE Healthcare's MAC i is an ultra-portable, battery-operated electrocardiogram machine, designed for use in rural clinics in India, where mains electricity is either intermittent or non-existent.
25,000 rupees (£320), gehealthcare.com
Digital stethoscope for remote diagnosis Mashavu is a Kenyan telemedicine social enterprise that connects people in remote rural areas with doctors based elsewhere, via one-stop diagnostic "kiosks" run by non-specialists.
$5 (£3.20), mashavu.com
Low-cost phototherapy for babies Neonatal jaundice, which can lead to brain damage, can be treated by exposing a baby to blue light in the wavelength 420-448nm. D-Rev's unit uses blue LEDs, which last longer than fluorescent bulbs.
In development, d-rev.org
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
