Katharina Buczek
This past month, scientists from the University of Cambridge successfully tested an artificial pancreas among patients living with type 2 diabetes.
The device, which uses an algorithm developed by Cambridge researchers, was able to double the length of time patients spent in the target glucose range as opposed to standard treatments. It also cut the amount of time patients spent with high glucose levels in half.
According to the CDC, over 37 million Americans have diabetes– with between 90 and 95 percent of these patients having type 2 diabetes.
This disease causes levels of blood sugar– or glucose– to spike too high. Normally, blood sugar levels are able to be controlled by insulin.
Among type 2 diabetes patients, though, insulin production experiences disruptions. So, over time, this disruption can have severe consequences– including heart disease, as well as kidney, eye, and nerve damage.
Typically, patients manage this disease via a plethora of lifestyle changes, such as more exercise and an improved diet. Medications are also prescribed with the goal of maintaining low glucose levels.
However, scientists from the Univerity of Cambridge Wellcome-MRC Institute of Metabolic Science believe they have developed a better treatment option– an artificial pancreas.
The device combines both an insulin pump and an off-the-shelf glucose monitor with an app known as CamAPS HX– which was developed by the team.
The app is powered by an algorithm that predicts how much insulin is required for each patient to maintain glucose levels that are within the target range.
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