Monitoring Blood Glucose Levels Using a Bionic Pancreas

(WNDU) – 38 million Americans have diabetes.

Ten percent of people with diabetes have type 1 diabetes, which is usually diagnosed in children and young adults.

This means that these people will need to learn how to control their blood sugar and administer insulin throughout their lives.

However, new advances are making it easier for people with type 1 diabetes to manage their diabetes than ever before.

“I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in my 30s during the pandemic,” Fisler said.

Casey Fisler had to learn to count carbohydrates, check her blood sugar and operate an insulin pump multiple times a day.

“It's something you have to think about all the time,” Fisler said.

Fissler, like many people with type 1 diabetes, monitors his blood sugar with a bionic pancreas, a tiny patch worn on the skin. Users must manually input the amount of carbohydrates they've eaten, and their smartphone then alerts them if their blood sugar gets too high or low.

“Currently, these devices monitor blood glucose levels and respond by increasing or decreasing insulin based on that number,” said Dr. Steven Boyda, a professor of information sciences at the University of Colorado Boulder.

But what if these pumps got even smarter? Fissler is now part of a team at the University of Colorado Boulder that is developing algorithms that can better predict, rather than just react to, how blood sugar levels will change.

“So instead of just looking at, 'What's your blood sugar?' and 'Is it up or down?' we're looking at, 'What's your blood sugar?' and 'Where are you?' and 'Do you have plans?' and 'Who is around you?'” Dr. Boyda said.

This allows patients to live their lives more freely without constantly thinking about their type 1 diabetes.

Casey Fisler, who studies privacy and ethical issues surrounding digital technology, said one concern will be what people are willing to share in exchange for smarter devices that help them manage their type 1 diabetes.

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