Learn more about needleless patches that measure blood sugar

Diabetes is one of the most common non-communicable diseases encountered these days. Regular monitoring of blood glucose levels is needed to maintain the blood sugar levels. But monitoring involves daily finger pricks to measure blood sugar levels.

According to the article published in Nature Nanotechnology, a patch (needleless device) is used for blood sugar monitoring. To do this, the patch, which has miniature sensors, should be placed on the skin. What happens at this point is that the patch uses electric current to draw the glucose out from the fluid between the cells across hair follicles. The glucose is collected in small reservoirs and can be measured every 10-15 minutes over a duration of several hours. Afterwards, the readings are sent to user’s smart phone or smart watch to let them know when the medication is to be taken.

It is very accurate. Hence, there is no need to confirm reading with blood samples again. Researchers tested it on animal’s skin, and they found that the patch can track the blood glucose levels at ranges seen in humans with diabetes. Further testing it on humans, researchers successfully tested it over duration of 6 hours. They aim to increase the duration to 24 hours. With this non-invasive needleless technology, glucose monitoring will be made easier.

Advantages of Skin Patch

According to medical experts, skin patch has many benefits. These include:

• Non-invasive glucose monitoring
• Environment-friendly
• Low cost
• High accuracy
• Easily disposable.

This patch should prove its efficacy over 24-hour duration in clinical trials. Then only it will be made available on the market.

Other Non-invasive Devices

Well, other non-invasive devices include:

• Freestyle Libre: Skin patch measures glucose levels in the interstitial fluid between the cells right under the skin. And it can be used for 14 days
• GlucoTrack: It uses combination of ultrasonic, electromagnetic and thermal waves. To use it, a sensor is attached to ear
• GlucoWise: It can measure glucose levels by placing it on the ear lobe or the skin between thumb and index finger.

Final Words

There are a number of ways of measuring the blood sugar or glucose level. With over 422 million diabetic patients all over the world, these needleless techniques have become important for them to effectively manage their conditions. Apart from those who are already struggling with the ailment, healthy people can also use the same methods to put their chances of progressively developing the disease in check. Other common methods include Eversense, GlucoSense, NovioSense, Google’s smart contact lens, etc. If you already have the ailment, you should consider gifting yourself one of the devices.