Pain-free skin patch to automate diabetes management

Untreated, diabetes can result in both vascular and nerve damage throughout the body, with debilitating impacts on the eyes, feet, kidneys, and heart. Global incidence of all types of diabetes is about 285 million people, of which 90 per cent have Type-2 diabetes. 

 There is good news for diabetics as researchers have developed a pain-free skin patch containing dissolvable compounds that responds to blood chemistry to manage glucose automatically.

For millions of people with type 2 diabetes, ongoing vigilance over the amount of sugar, or glucose, in their blood is the key to health. A finger prick before mealtimes and maybe an insulin injection is an uncomfortable but necessary routine.

The new study, showed that the biochemical formula of mineralised compounds in the patch responds to sugar levels for days at a time.

In a proof-of-concept study performed with mice, the researchers showed that the biochemically formulated patch of dissolvable micro-needles can make the management of Type-2 diabetes much easier.
 
“This experimental approach could be a way to take advantage of the fact that persons with Type-2 diabetes can still produce some insulin,” said a researcher.

“A weekly micro-needle patch application would also be less complicated and painful than routines that require frequent blood testing,” a researcher said.

The base of the experimental patch is material called alginate, a gum-like natural substance extracted from brown algae.

 

It is mixed with therapeutic agents and poured into a microneedle form to make the patch.

“Alginate is a pliable material — it is soft, but not too soft,” said a lead researcher.

“It has to be able to poke the dermis, and while not a commonly used material for needles, it seems to work pretty well in this case,” the researcher said.

The team infused the alginate with a formula of biochemical particles that stimulates the body’s own insulin production when needed and curtails that stimulation when normal blood sugar concentration is reached.

The responsive delivery system of the patch can meet the body’s need for days instead of being used up all at once, the study said.

Insulin is a hormone made in the pancreas and secreted into the bloodstream to regulate glucose in response to food intake.

It is needed to move glucose from the bloodstream into cells where the sugar can be converted to energy or stored.

In Type-1 diabetes, usually diagnosed in children and young adults, the body does not make insulin at all.

Type-2 diabetes, which can be diagnosed at any age but more commonly as an adult, progressively lessens the body’s ability to make or use insulin.

Untreated, diabetes can result in both vascular and nerve damage throughout the body, with debilitating impacts on the eyes, feet, kidneys, and heart.

Global incidence of all types of diabetes is about 285 million people, of which 90 per cent have Type-2 diabetes.

Many require insulin therapy that is usually given by injection just under the skin in amounts that are calculated according to the deficit in naturally generated insulin in the blood. Insulin therapy is not managed well in half of all cases.

The alternate therapy approach developed by these researchers may eventually make management of Type-2 diabetes a lot more convenient.

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Hi-tech patch could end the pain of needle tests for diabetes sufferers

Thousands of people with diabetes are to get  access to a life-changing device which spells an end to painful finger pricks.

Health bosses last night announced the hi-tech patch will be available on  prescription for the first time.

The device, a sensor the size of a £2 coin, automatically reads blood sugar levels from the cells just below the skin and sends it to a smartphone.

It means patients no longer have to subject themselves to the frequent and painful finger pricks currently required to monitor glucose levels.

Major studies have shown the technology significantly improves the patients’ health because they have much better information about blood sugar peaks and troughs, and so are better able to manage their condition.

The device is particularly valuable for people with type 1 diabetes - an autoimmune disease which means the body cannot produce its own insulin, stopping proper regulation of blood sugar.

The type 1 form affects a lot of people, usually first striking in childhood or adolescence, and everyone with the condition has to constantly monitor their blood sugar levels to check whether they need an insulin injection.

It is thought to be especially useful for parents of children with type 1 diabetes, who are able to collect data from the patch by swiping it with a smartphone, even when their child is asleep.

And when they are at school they can monitor it remotely, because if a teacher or nurse swipes the patch the data is automatically sent to their phone.

The device could also help the 25 per cent of patients with type 2 diabetes who are insulin dependent.

The system works by a 35mm-wide patch which is placed on the back of the upper arm.

A tiny filament - the width of three human hairs - goes through the upper level of the skin and reads the glucose levels in the substance between skin cells.

The information is transferred from the patch to a smartphone via a ‘flash sensing’ system– the same technology used for some card payments.

Each patch lasts two weeks before it is replaced.

‘Flash glucose monitoring can free people living with diabetes from the pain and rigour of frequent finger-prick testing, and puts them in greater control of their condition.

 

‘Newer technologies can make daily life with type 1 diabetes much easier. Each and every person with type 1 diabetes who wants this technology, and would benefit, should receive it.’

‘Living with diabetes can be difficult and stressful which is why this government is working hard to ensure patients have access to a wide range of appropriate products and treatments to help them manage their condition.

‘With the patch now available the patients have an exciting and innovative option to consider to help monitor their condition and prevent any long term complications.’

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