Microfluidic device for clinical outcome prediction of severe sepsis

A rapid and accurate method to predict the mortality of severe sepsis patients is critically needed for clinical practice. In a recent study, the concentration of cell-free DNA (cfDNA) in blood was found to be a prognostic indicator for ICU mortality in patients with severe sepsis. But current DNA quantification techniques are time-consuming and involve extensive sample preparation. In this manuscript, we demonstrate a low-cost microfluidic device capable of rapid quantification of cfDNA concentration directly from blood plasma in 5 min.