A new, non-invasive, wireless hemoglobin measurement device has been shown in two separate trials to be as accurate as invasive devices in testing for anemia and in screening potential blood donors, the product's manufacturer reports.

OrSense, an Israeli maker of non-invasive medical devices for testing blood, this week is introducing Glasswing, its first wireless hemoglobin meter, at the annual Congress of the International Society of Blood Transfusion (ISBT), now underway in Cancun, Mexico. The device, which aids in detecting anemia and hemorrhage as well as in screening blood donors for adequate hemoglobin levels, measures light transmitted through the patient's finger, eliminating the need for a needle stick.

Glasswing has a rechargeable battery for portability and can wirelessly transmit data in real time to electronic health records and printers, the company says.

"OrSense's non-invasive solution improves anemia screening and monitoring by eliminating pain, reducing infection risk and enabling a simple and fast diagnosis. Hemoglobin measurements obtained by our system in multiple applications, showed accurate performance compared with the gold standard invasive reference values," OrSense CEO Lior D. Ma'ayan says in a press release.

Two posters being presented in Cancun this week back up his statement.

One study, led by OrSense researchers and conducted in the hematology department at Assaf Harofeh Medical Center in Zerifin, Israel, found that the OrSense NBM200, the wired precursor to the Glasswing, was just as accurate in detecting anemia as an invasive test. "This study supports the use of the device as an accurate, simple and fast measurement technique for measurement of hemoglobin and for anemia screening," the poster says.

The other poster reports similar results from a trial at the Blood Transfusion Center at Laiko General Hospital in Athens, Greece, that screened potential blood donors. Because the test is non-invasive, the Greek researchers surmise that the prospect of a more comfortable screening process might help in recruitment of donors.

OrSense sees opportunities for the Glasswing in perioperative and critical care units, emergency departments, blood banks, primary care practices, public health clinics and home care. A company spokeswoman tells MobiHealthNews via e-mail that the product has not been installed in a U.S. facility yet.