Today I've got quite an incredible article to tell you about: Columbia University has invented a particular device to test for HIV. You can plug this device into a smartphone and with just a prick of blood, it will run a test on HIV and syphilis. It takes 15 minutes for the results to be shown and the device costs around $34.

It is described by Samuel Sia, head researcher of the Columbia University team, as a device that has full laboratory quality and could save millions of lives. In fact, it has already been tested in Rwanda on 96 people. The tests proved nearly as accurate as a standard test, it has a sensitivity of 92% and a specificity of 79%. As a result, the researchers now want to plan a larger-scale trial, so that these tests can be used in developing countries.

Reading this, I realized that we should be very grateful for all the new technologies. This simple test can save so many people and instead of bringing it to a lab and wait, you get your result in 15 minutes. Hooray for technology!

Sources: http://time.com/3696637/smartphone-hiv-aids-test/
http://in.reuters.com/article/2015/02/05/health-hiv-smartphone-idINKBN0L909620150205