Fast antibiotic test certified for use with patient samples

A pioneering antibiotic test developed in Southampton is now certified for use with patient samples - paving the way for faster, life‑saving treatment.

Doctors in hospitals throughout Great Britain can now use the test to prescribe the most suitable antibiotics.

The test has been developed to determine the antibiotics that will work for treating a patient's infection in hours rather than days.    

The iFAST Diagnostics test could save thousands of lives and shorten hospital stays. It will also help the fight against antimicrobial resistance.

Certified for use 

The test is known as the iFAST ONE ultra-rapid Antimicrobial Susceptibility Test (AST) system.

Professor Hywel Morgan is the company’s Chief Technology Officer. He co-founded iFAST Diagnostics in 2022 with Dr Toby King and Dr Dan Spencer.

His work forms part of the NIHR Southampton Biomedical Research Centre’s microbiology, immunology and infection theme.

The test is now UK Conformity Assessed (UKCA) certified for the testing of patient samples, direct from bacteria blood cultures.

The UKCA mark is mandatory for products sold in Great Britain. It indicates the manufacturer has met all applicable requirements. 

Results up to two days faster

The iFAST system can deliver high-throughput AST results to doctors in under three hours. This is done at costs comparable to the current standard of care, but up to two days faster.

This enables doctors to determine and prescribe the optimal antibiotic to the sickest patients, all within a single working shift.

Dr Toby King, iFAST Diagnostics Chief Executive Officer, said:

“We are super excited to have achieved our UKCA mark. As we go to market, hospitals using our system will have access to AST results in under three hours, instead of 24-48 hours.

“This will massively improve the outcome for thousands of patients, especially in increasingly critical areas such as sepsis and multi-drug-resistant infections, all without increasing the overall cost of the testing.

“To have achieved this within three years of founding the company is astonishing – and testament to the ability, dedication and hard work of our amazing founders Hywel Morgan and Daniel Spencer, and the entire iFAST team.”

Professor Morgan, Professor of Bioelectronics at the University of Southampton, said:

“I am delighted that clinicians will now be able to use data from our test to quickly determine which antibiotic to prescribe. This will enable patients to get the best antibiotic faster, and help tackle the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance.

“This is the culmination of years of research, taking the test all the way from our initial idea to now being able to be used to benefit patients. It is wonderful to have reached this point.”