Audrey Wang
BME PhD Proposal Presentation

Date: 2025-10-28
Time: 1:00 pm
Location / Meeting Link: EBB 4029 & Zoom: https://emory.zoom.us/j/94403923389

Committee Members:
Wilbur Lam, MD/PhD (Advisor); David Myers, PhD; Francisco Robles, PhD; Aniruddh Sarkar, PhD; Cheryl Maier, MD/PhD


Title: Development of a Low-Cost, “Physics-Based” Fingerstick Blood Test for Severe Thrombocytopenia 

Abstract:
Platelets are key regulators of primary hemostasis, enabling clot formation. Patients with severe thrombocytopenia, or critically low platelet counts (PLT), are at high risk of life-threatening bleeding and require immediate prophylactic platelet transfusion. More than half of leukemia patients develop some degree of thrombocytopenia, and over 10% fall to platelet levels requiring transfusion, highlighting the need for close platelet count monitoring in this population. However, current methods for platelet count are costly and not feasible for home-use, limiting accessibility in resource-limited settings. Previous studies show that platelets contract during clot formation, generating a contractile force which is directly correlated with PLT. We hypothesize that image-based measurement of clot contraction can enable detection of severe thrombocytopenia from a fingerstick sample of blood. The first aim of this proposal is to develop a low-cost, image-based system that quantifies clot contraction in a single drop of blood using capillary blood collection and image segmentation. The second aim seeks to identify hematologic confounders of clot contraction and mitigate their effects to enable detection of severe thrombocytopenia based on measurement of clot contraction alone. The third aim will evaluate the clinical performance of our device with samples from leukemia patients receiving chemotherapy. Together, these aims will enable the development of a low-cost, home-based blood test for severe thrombocytopenia that leverages clot contraction as a novel surrogate for platelet count, expands access to platelet monitoring, and could ultimately reduce the risk of severe bleeding outcomes.