Using dried blood spot Sampling for routinE Immunology Testing
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Using dried blood spot Sampling for routinE Immunology Testing (USE-IT)
IRAS ID
333251
Contact name
Adrian Shields
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Birmingham
Duration of Study in the UK
3 years, 0 months, 0 days
Research summary
Individuals with immunodeficiencies require regular monitoring to ensure they are on the right treatment and that there are no complications from their underlying immune system problem. At present, individuals attend hospital for these blood tests and often have to travel long distances as there are so few specialist centres in the UK. We are investigating whether an alternative technique called dried blood spots (DBS), which could be used at home, can be used to undertake these blood tests.
We intend to collect a dried blood spot and a regular venous blood test, taken at the same time, from one hundred individuals with immunodeficiency. This will allow us to compare the results of immunology tests performed between the two different ways of collecting blood. This will help us determine whether DBS can be used as an alternative to venous blood for remote testing.
REC name
South Central - Oxford C Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
24/SC/0073
Date of REC Opinion
22 Feb 2024
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion