糖尿病-测试血糖的新方法(英文)
NEW YORK, Mar 03 (Reuters Health) -- One of the more unpleasant aspects of having type 1 diabetes is the need to prick one’s finger to test blood sugar several times a day. Most diabetics agree -- it hurts! A new study reports progress in developing an ultrasound device as a painless alternative.
"This method involves no needles and is completely painless," explains Dr. Robert Gabbay of Pennsylvania State University’s School of Medicine. "We know that by self- monitoring the disease and keeping glucose levels at a safe level, individuals can greatly reduce their chance of the disease giving them additional complications such as blindness or kidney failure."
Gabbay is one of a team of researchers headed by Drs. Joseph Kost and Robert Langer of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston, who have developed a method of measuring blood sugar using ultrasound. The team has found that a single burst of ultrasound, at about the level used by a dentist to clean teeth, temporarily increases the permeability of the skin and allows glucose to travel across this barrier.
After testing the device in the laboratory to make sure it didn’t damage the skin when used on rats, the researchers tried it on seven human volunteers with type 1 diabetes. While using the ultrasound device on the subjects’ forearms, they also measured glucose in blood samples for comparison. The results were pretty consistent, suggesting that the ultrasound device is accurate.
The study authors explain that a user would have to calibrate the device once by doing a finger stick measurement, and then it would be able to monitor blood sugar continuously for up to 15 hours.
The volunteers did not feel any pain while using the device, and there was no damage to their skin. The investigators are currently doing more safety studies.
Although the researchers used standard ultrasound machines for this study, Gabbay reports that "a new hand- held device has been developed so patients could ultimately do the test at home." They suggest that the device may be incorporated in a wristwatch or patch that could display blood glucose levels continuously.
The authors also suggest that in the future, the device could be combined with an implanted insulin delivery system that would dispense the drug when the monitor indicated it was needed. Such a system would get rid of both finger sticks and insulin shots -- and might also result in better control of blood sugar., http://www.100md.com
"This method involves no needles and is completely painless," explains Dr. Robert Gabbay of Pennsylvania State University’s School of Medicine. "We know that by self- monitoring the disease and keeping glucose levels at a safe level, individuals can greatly reduce their chance of the disease giving them additional complications such as blindness or kidney failure."
Gabbay is one of a team of researchers headed by Drs. Joseph Kost and Robert Langer of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston, who have developed a method of measuring blood sugar using ultrasound. The team has found that a single burst of ultrasound, at about the level used by a dentist to clean teeth, temporarily increases the permeability of the skin and allows glucose to travel across this barrier.
After testing the device in the laboratory to make sure it didn’t damage the skin when used on rats, the researchers tried it on seven human volunteers with type 1 diabetes. While using the ultrasound device on the subjects’ forearms, they also measured glucose in blood samples for comparison. The results were pretty consistent, suggesting that the ultrasound device is accurate.
The study authors explain that a user would have to calibrate the device once by doing a finger stick measurement, and then it would be able to monitor blood sugar continuously for up to 15 hours.
The volunteers did not feel any pain while using the device, and there was no damage to their skin. The investigators are currently doing more safety studies.
Although the researchers used standard ultrasound machines for this study, Gabbay reports that "a new hand- held device has been developed so patients could ultimately do the test at home." They suggest that the device may be incorporated in a wristwatch or patch that could display blood glucose levels continuously.
The authors also suggest that in the future, the device could be combined with an implanted insulin delivery system that would dispense the drug when the monitor indicated it was needed. Such a system would get rid of both finger sticks and insulin shots -- and might also result in better control of blood sugar., http://www.100md.com