As more and more Americans are diagnosed with diabetes, more device companies are stepping up to help them deal with it. While eradication of the disease is the end goal for the medical field, that is not likely to come about anytime soon. The current focus by the medical device industry is on perfecting devices that can improve the quality of life for diabetics. Several recent innovations will help diabetes patients keep track of their health in a more passive and constant way. The hope is, of course, that while the disease continues to affect an increasing number of people, the effects it has on these people's way of life are minimal.
A good place to start is to phase out the need for insulin shots -- the bane of many diabetics' existences. A drug company is currently developing a way to get around at least some of them – an inhaled insulin. The Boston Globe ran an article over the weekend describing the work of one device company, Alkermes, which hopes to be among the first to market with an inhaler to deliver the drug. The article says that the inhaler will only reduce the number of shots that diabetics need to give themselves, not eliminate them completely. Only the irregular shots required at mealtimes would be rendered moot. So-called “baseline” shots would still be required.
Another unpleasant reality of diabetes is the patient's need to regularly check his or her glucose levels by testing blood drawn from the finger. Continuous glucose-monitoring devices are currently the focus of many device manufacturers, which are expecting this market to continue to grow. These monitors notify the patient if their glucose levels are dangerous without requiring the patient to perform a blood test.
Last week, the St. Paul Pioneer Press published an article detailing Medtronic's steps toward getting their continuous glucose-monitoring device to market. The article cites several challenges standing in the way of these devices becoming widespread, including skeptical insurance companies still hesitant to reimburse the monitors until they see more clinical trial data. Medtronic is currently performing such a trial with the hopes of proving the benefits of these systems. Unfortunately, in the same way the inhaler will not completely eliminate shots, the monitor would not allow diabetics to say goodbye to blood tests. The Medtronic article states that patients should still test their blood before acting on information obtained from the monitor. It would still be a very significant advancement in treating diabetes, though. An effective monitor could allow patients to track their glucose levels closely at all times, rather than just relying on the few times a day they perform finger sticks.
In addition to the monitoring, insulin pumps are becoming more user-friendly. The OmniPod Insulin Management System, for example, is getting near-universal recognition for its design. The device was a gold medal winner in this year's Medical Design Excellence Awards and recently received another award from the Industrial Designers Society of America . The OmniPod eliminates the tubing that traditional insulin pumps use by allowing the pump to communicate wirelessly with the device's Personal Diabetes Manager controller.
Perhaps most important in the fight to control the effects of diabetes is early detection. One company is hoping that a faster diagnosis will mean an easier treatment for the patient. Diabetes Detections, Inc has created the Vibrameter , a device that will allow testing of the disease's early symptoms via vibration using common handheld electronics like cell phones and PDAs. The press release states that early detection could reduce the amount of money the American healthcare system spends on diabetes treatment by more than 70%.
And where to go from here? The St. Paul Pioneer Press article references an implantable artificial pancreas as the “Holy Grail of diabetes.” This would mean implanting a continuous glucose monitor and an insulin pump into the patient. The two devices would work together to ensure that the patient's body was always given the right amount of insulin. Needles and blood tests would finally be rendered obsolete. The patient would, essentially, be given no responsibility in managing the disease. Although that is still years away, current industry efforts are certainly paving the way for it with devices that offer patients a simpler way of treating diabetes today. The faster the technology is perfected and accepted, the faster diabetic patients can lead more-flexible, higher quality lives.
