Medical testing firm Omega Diagnostics is to delay production of a testing unit it hopes will revolutionise treatment of HIV in developing nations.
The Clackmannanshire firm, which employs 30 people in Alva and another 120 worldwide, was expected to compete a technology transfer agreement for its CD4 HIV testing product this summer.
The testing unit is able to assess the number of white blood cells in an HIV patient’s bloodstream within 40 minutes. It will then recommend instant treatment if the white blood cell count has fallen below a certain level.
In May this year the company said it hoped to press ahead with manufacture of the kit once testing was complete by the end of summer.
However, after reviewing the results from patient samples, the company has discovered greater variability in results than was expected.
Omega is refining the production process to address this issue and expects to complete the three-batch evaluation process by year’s end.
Omega, which is also developing a new allergy testing product, said it expects to issue a trading update on October 17.
