There may be a new device on the horizon for type 2 diabetes patients

If you have type 2 diabetes, listen up - in a new study published in the journal Scientific Reports, researchers have revealed that they've developed a wearable diagnostic biosensor that's capable of detecting three interconnected diabetes-related compounds in perspired sweat with losing signal integrity.

In their findings, the researchers described that this revolutionary device can detect glucose, cortisol and interleukin-6 in microscopic amounts of perspiration. Keep reading to find out more!

Researchers have developed the first wearable device for type 2 diabetes patients to monitor their condition

“Type 2 diabetes affects so many people,” Shalini Prasad, professor of bioengineering in the Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science, said. “We believe we’ve created the first diagnostic wearable that can monitor these compounds for up to a week, which goes beyond the type of single use monitors that are on the market today.”
 
Last year in October, Prasad and her team of colleagues reported that they could measure glucose and cortisol in sweat with a number of significant advances that allowed them to create a more versatile and practical device.

 
 
They noted that the one factor that enabled the progress of the device was the use of room temperature ionic liquid – also known as RTIL – which is basically a gel that helps stabilise the microenvironment at he skin cell surface so that users can take one week’s worth of reading without having the device’s performance degrade over time.
 

On the downside, this new device for type 2 diabetes patients is very expensive

There’s only one downside to this new device for type 2 diabetes patients: The cost of it. “You’re buying four monitors per month instead of 30. You’re looking at a year’s supply of only about 50. The RTIL also allows the detector to interface well with different skin types – the texture and quality of pediatric skin versus geriatric skin have created difficulties in prior models,” Prasad explained.
 
Prasad’s team also found that their biomarker results were accurate with even a tiny amount of sweat requiring only one to three microliters, in comparison to the 25 to 50 believed previously. Make sure you keep you eyes peeled for more news on this revolutionary device for type 2 diabetes patients!

Tags: type 2 diabetes