DIY Blood Draw – Could Patients Collect Blood At Home?

Blood draws are essential, but this doesn’t make them anyone’s favourite pastime: they are time-consuming and involve needles. Is there a way to make it in a do-it-yourself (DIY) fashion? Can we collect blood samples at home?

While this method will be far from omnipotent for the unforeseeable future, it might have its merits. The pandemic highlighted how avoiding contact with a large number of random patients can be a wise idea. Besides, home-sampling of blood can provide a very efficient and convenient method for clinical trials, encouraging patient participation.

Let’s see the technology first. The initiatives we judge as trustworthy at the moment work along the same principles: they collect capillary blood from the upper arm with the help of a vacuum. After the preparatory steps, you stick the device to your arm, push the button, the suction creates a vacuum, microneedles/a tiny lancet pricks the surface of your skin, and in a few minutes, you have a small vial of blood.