Microneedle painlessly monitors drug levels without the need to draw blood

[AussieNeil]

'Microneedle technology has been around for years, and we've seen vaccines and medication administered via the technique, which uses tiny needles to break only the upper layer of the patient's skin. Now, the pain-free tech is being used for something a little different, with researchers creating a device capable of monitoring patient drug levels – something that usually requires the drawing of blood.'

gizmag.com/microneedle-drug...

Interestingly, I was given vancomycin IV for my lymphangitis earlier this year and I certainly wasn't monitored for drug toxicity. I was however told that vancomycin isn't kind to your veins and can cause necrosis (cell death) in the cells lining the vein wall, so the cannula needs to be repositioned after about 3 days, which was my experience, with the inflammation taking about a week to subside.

Neil

Photo: Dewdrops on a wild geranium flower

[Justasheet1]

Neil,

Interesting. When I had pneumonia last year I had terrible pain after a couple of days but I am a tough stick so they were leary to change the site.

I was on vanco and now it makes sense.

Jeff