image by: Bill McBain

HWN Suggests

Diabetes Going Down for the Count?

Diabetes has already had one research miracle. Remember the recombinant DNA struggle? In 1977, there was a tremendous debate between scientists who wanted the research to go forward carefully, and the religious right, skeptics, and conservative politicians who wanted it stopped.

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Featured

 Insulin Implant Could Replace Traditional Injections for Diabetics

By implanting “living drug factories” into the bodies of diabetes patients, researchers believe they could eliminate the everyday hassle of finger pricks and insulin injections.

Articles of Interest

A Quest: Insulin-Releasing Implant For Type-1 Diabetes

"It's hard to predict what's going to happen," says diabetes researcher Alice Tomei, an assistant professor and director of the islet immunoengineering lab at the University of Miami. She says Nyitray's approach is rational, "but until you test in humans, it's hard to tell whether they work or not."

Artificial organs developed by biohackers will soon deliver insulin to diabetics

Artificial organs developed by biohackers will soon deliver insulin to diabetics.

End of the diabetes jab? New insulin implant controls blood glucose levels without injections

It would eliminate the need for diabetics to inject insulin up to four times a day. The artificial pancreas could help all type 1 insulin-dependent diabetics and some type 2 diabetics who need daily injections. ‘This device is cheap and simple to use,’ said Professor Taylor. ‘It has the potential to bring an end to the misery of daily injections for diabetics.’

Implantable device could save diabetes patients from dangerously low blood sugar

The new implant carries a reservoir of glucagon that can be stored under the skin and deployed during an emergency — with no injections needed.

New Implantable Pump Could Cut Diabetes Treatments

A diabetes drug delivered continuously from a small implantable pump resulted in a marked and sustained reduction in blood sugar in patients in two studies, potentially setting the stage for a once-a-year treatment option to manage the disease.

New Implants Could Treat Type 2 Diabetes Without Needles

Implants that deliver a constant metered dose of medication have plenty of promise. They’re especially useful for making sure patients don’t have to orient their daily schedule around their medication times.

No more insulin injections?

Encapsulated pancreatic cells offer possible new diabetes treatment.

Potential diabetes treatment advances

Device shields beta cells from immune system attack.

Putting Diabetes on Autopilot

New devices may spare patients from monitoring their blood glucose.

Resources

EversenseCGM

One sensor placement is all you need for a year. A trained healthcare provider places the sensor, with only a small incision - usually involving no stitches and only a bandage!

Portal Pump

Portal is developing the first artificial pancreas, a fully automated insulin delivery system, made possible by the fast pharmacokinetics of insulin delivered to the intraperitoneal space, an implantable pump, heat stable insulin, and modern continuous glucose monitor (CGM) technology. The Portal PumpTM is anticipated to deliver an average time in range of about 90 percent while relieving patients of the relentless management burden. Patients will no longer need to provide carbohydrate counts, meal announcements, exercise announcements, or wake in the night to manage their blood glucose. By restoring the function of a pancreas, Portal Pump TM empowers patients to effortlessly achieve excellent health outcomes.