New blood test could help spot children at risk of serious illnesses, study finds
Scientists say a new blood test that analyses lipids could make it easier to identify children at risk of serious health conditions including type 2 diabetes, liver and heart disease.
Researchers at King’s College London said the test capitalised on a link between lipids and diseases affecting metabolism in children, and could serve as an early warning system for potentially life-threatening illnesses.
Using machines that test blood plasma in babies and that already exist in hospitals, doctors could spot early signs of disease in children quicker and help them access treatment, the researchers said.
The study’s principal author, Dr Cristina Legido-Quigley, said: “For decades, scientists have relied on a classification system for lipids that have split them into good and bad cholesterol, but now with a simple blood test we can assess a much broader range of lipid molecules that could serve as vital early warning signs for illness.”
The development had significant implications, said Legido-Quigley, a group leader in systems medicine at King’s and head of systems medicine at the Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen.
