Emerging Diabetes Technology Driven By Patient Demands

Article preview from Medtech Insight - February , 2012

Integration has become a key driver in the development of a new wave of diabetes tools that have either recently hit the market or will become available in the next few years. Many diabetics, who have a great deal of influence on the success or failure of products in this space, are seeking devices that work seamlessly with the smart phones and cellular technology that are so prevalent today. A number of start-up companies are poised to compete with the bigger diabetes manufacturers as the market continues to evolve.

Emerging Diabetes Technology Driven By Patient Demands

Article preview from Medtech Insight - February , 2012

Developing a successful device in the diabetes market requires paying attention to what patients want. Although physicians are naturally a key source of information, diabetics are not only very active, but also can be extremely demanding about what they want, need, and will use. Younger diabetics brought up in the internet age are a particularly vocal group, and they have learned to use social media to band together and make their opinions heard. A manufacturer that wants to develop a diabetes product that will be in demand must listen to what patients are requesting. In many ways the things diabetics are asking for are not hard to understand; they want less invasive/pain-free methods of testing glucose levels and delivering insulin and devices that take advantage of ongoing information technology advances to record and track their glucose readings.

Products that reflect this trend have already begun entering the market, including products from companies with technologies that tap into the pervasive wireless and mobile capabilities currently touching nearly every industry. Bluetooth technology has been incorporated into several models of glucose meters to transmit data wirelessly to a patient’s smart phone or computer. However, one start-up company has taken the use of wireless technology a step further and created the first cellular enabled-glucometer that transmits data directly and automatically to a database. The accomplishment comes from Telcare Inc., which received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the Telcare Blood Glucose Meter (BGM) and the accompanying Telserve Data Management System in September 2011.

Continued...

To read this article in its entirety, Purchase now as a PDF and receive it immediately via email. Or get it FREE when you subscribe to Medtech Insight Newsletter.

About Medtech Insight

Medtech Insight newsletter provides insights into the technology and market developments (devices, instrumentation, biomaterials, gene therapy, tissue engineering, etc.) impacting a wide range of surgical and non-surgical clinical practices.