A recent college grad has developed a new phototherapy device, aimed at treating newborn jaundice (his parents must be beaming). This is big news in India, where we learned of this commonsense yet extraordinary application:
The GINI 300, devised by Vijay Anand, who recently graduated from Duke University in the US with a masters in engineering management, costs under 500 dollars, while a standard photo-therapy device used to treat the ailment averages 4,000 dollars.
In an e-mail interview with PTI, the US-based Anand said the device, by replacing conventional fluorescent tubes with an array of LEDs (light emitting diodes), as part of a new design, consumes less power, has a longer life span and does not emit ultra-violet rays.
It was made to be battery operated, considering intermittent power supply in targeted Third World countries like Tanzania, Nigeria, Uganda, Ethiopia and Afghanistan.
Hardly limited to developing nations, we suspect cash-strapped hospitals in the US might be interested in this technology, as well.
More from the Duke University CUREs Challenge, which is providing Mr. Anand with startup money and expertise.