A new hand-held medical device will help UK athletes reach the top of their game when preparing for upcoming sporting competitions.

Elite athletes will be able to monitor various proteins which reveal details about the condition of the body, known as biomarkers, before, during and after training sessions.

These biomarkers can give a clear indication of their physical health and the effectiveness of a particular training programme.

Everyone reacts differently to training, so understanding how activities affect the body helps to ensure that athletes follow the best programmes for them and avoid injury.

This is particularly important for elite level athletes, where small changes in fitness can mean the difference between success and failure.

The time is normally taken to send samples to the laboratory and receive the results can limit the benefits.

Argento Diagnostics, a spin-off from the National Physical Laboratory, the UK’s National Measurement Institute, has developed a hand-held device which provides a quick, full diagnosis from a single small sample (such as blood, urine or saliva), returning results within minutes.

As well as providing real-time data for training, the results can also quickly identify injuries or medical conditions, enabling rapid treatment before long-term damage can be done and therefore increase the chance of a quick recovery.

UK Sport, the UK’s high-performance sports agency, has reached an agreement to become the first organization to use cutting edge technology.

Source: Medical News Today