Researchers have developed a way to measure sperm count using your Android phone
In the not so distant future home fertility tests for men could soon be as common and easy as home pregnancy tests for women. It may sound like science fiction, but researchers at Harvard have created a device that — when attached to a regular Android smartphone — can tell a man’s fertility with 98% accuracy… all you gotta do it load it up with your sperm.
Once a sample has been extracted, it goes onto a disposable microchip that, when inserted into the rapid infertility diagnostic tool, uses your smartphone phone’s camera as a microscope to measure the mobility of the sperm. A companion app will take video of the sperm sample and report back its findings, making it extremely easy for anyone to conduct the test without any sort of training.
According to assistant professor Hadi Shafiee at Harvard Medical School, he and his team are still working on getting FDA approval, but they’re confident they can go to market at just under $50 once (if) they begin mass production. Not bad considering traditional lab-run fertility tests can reach upwards of $10,000. An affordable test anyone can perform at home sounds like a huge win for anyone who believes they could suffer from male infertility.
[NPR]