Medimate Minilab, a Microchip Capillary Electrophoresis Self-test Platform

In this chapter we describe the Medimate Minilab as a new self-test platform. The Medimate Minilab is based on microchip capillary electrophoresis and is capable of quantifying ionic species in aqueous liquids, including whole blood and urine. It was introduced in the European market in 2013 as a self-test, in the first instance for the analysis of lithium. Lithium is a drug used by patients with manic depressive illness, which due to its toxicity requires frequent blood level monitoring. The Medimate Minilab enables self-test analysis of lithium by the patients at home, contributing to a better quality of life. The first part of the chapter describes the essentials of the measurement method, the technology applied, and the innovations that were required to make the platform suitable as self-test. The second part shows the maturity of the platform as a diagnostic evaluation device for lithium by describing the test results according to the latest validation standards. Starting with basic background information and followed by the test acceptance criteria and the detailed results, this part ends with the conclusion that the Medimate Minilab is suitable as a lithium self-test by a patient at home within the required acceptance criteria. The last part of the chapter shows that the platform is capable of analyzing more ionic species, such as for instance sodium, creatinine, and calcium, and the chapter ends with the future perspectives.