Hamilton develops new swab device

Hamilton, a medtech company with Swiss headquarters in Bonaduz, has worked together with Rhinostics to develop an innovative nasal and buccal swab collection device. It combines the respective strengths of the two companies, as Hamilton reported in a press release. The hands-free automated workflow includes use of the RHINOstic nasal swab collection device and one of Hamilton’s automated liquid handling workstations, along with the LabElite DeCapper from Hamilton Storage Technologies. The device automatically removes the cap from the tube.

According to Hamilton, this combination of technologies alleviates common time-consuming bottlenecks in testing workflows, even during times of surging sample influx. Sample throughput is increased and turnaround times reduced as well as fewer staff being needed.

Viral samples can be released directly into a small amount of saline, providing sample concentration of 30x or greater, providing greater standardization and improving downstream assay reliability. Additionally, the samples collected with RHINOstic can be shipped without viral transport media.

The product provides an immediate impact to increasing COVID testing efficiencies. At the same time, it is applicable to broader respiratory viral, bacterial and genetic testing using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and next generation sequencing (NGS). RHINOstic is registered as Class I exempt medical device with the FDA and is available for purchase. mm