Arden's Day is the Wego Health 2011 Health Activist Award winner!
So excited... I'll post more later when my heart stops beating so fast.
What a wonderful surprise it was to be chosen from among so many deserving and wonderfully written health blogs. A day after learning that I won WEGO Health's 2011 Health Activist Award in the 'Advocating for Another' category, well, I'm still a bit in shock.
WEGO Health houses an amazing collection of communities and blogs about a sweeping range of medical issues. It's members offer advice and support to countless people that need it. If you or someone that you know is living with a medical condition and looking for community, I strongly suggest that you click on this link and see if there is a group tailored to your specific need - I bet that there is.
I want to thank WEGO, the independent judges and the type I diabetes community for embracing what I'm trying to do with this website. It was a genuine honor to be named as the winner in such a broad and powerful community of people. I'm proud of this site and the words that you'll find on it. Moreover, I'm happy beyond words that it helps people. Thank you all very much!
Brown University Study: Biochip measures glucose in saliva, not blood
Researchers at Brown University have developed technology that can measure glucose in human saliva.
Engineers at Brown University have designed a biological device that can measure glucose concentrations in human saliva. The technique could eliminate the need for diabetics to draw blood to check their glucose levels. The biochip uses plasmonic interferometers and could be used to measure a range of biological and environmental substances.
Read the entire article at this link, it's facinating!
Tripping the light fantastic Each plasmonic interferometer – thousands of them per square millimeter – consists of a slit flanked by two grooves etched in a silver metal film. The schematic shows glucose molecules “dancing” on the sensor surface illuminated by light with different colors. Changes in light intensity transmitted through the slit of each plasmonic interferometer yield information about the concentration of glucose molecules in solution.Credit: Domenico Pacifici
FDA clears Freestyle test strips for use with OmniPod
"The FDA has notified the company that the new Abbott Freestyle test strip has been cleared for use with the OmniPod," Insulet confirmed in an email to MassDevice. "The companies are in the midst of updating the product label and will be communicating with customers once that has been completed, hopefully next week."
It's official, after more then a year and I can only imagine how much cost to taxpayers, the FDA finally has said that we can use Abbott's butterfly test strips in our OmniPod PDMs.
I'm not all that excited and am about to be a bit snarky about this announcement because I figured this out over a year ago for free and it only took me two days.
I completely understand and support that medical devices, equipment and the like need to be safe, accurate and durable but come on - test strips? I asked myself last year, "why would Abbott develop and manufacture a test strip that wouldn't work with their business partner's testing devices". I found the common sense answer to simply be, "of course they wouldn't do that". Then I conducted my own test and began using the strips with Arden's PDM in December of 2010, we have never looked back.
I'd like to congratulate the FDA on once again turning something simple into a train wreck, you guys are nothing if not consistent. Maybe now they'll (FDA) have time to clear Insulet's latest OmniPod design, from what I understand it's being held up because the "documentation can be confusing". To be clear, I've seen the documentation, used the new pods and not only couldn't the documentation be any simpler but it's about 99% the same as the current generation's instructions. In my opinion the new OmniPod design is being held up because of bureaucratic and political BS.
Our representatives in D.C. love to say that business should allowed to thrive but they'll take any chance to stand in it's way. Insulet is not a huge or rich company. They make a wonderful product that every day helps countless people live easier and more healthy lives. I'd very much like to see the FDA give them a chance to make a profit so that their amazing insulin pump can be around until type I diabetes is cured. Hopefully that cure, when discovered, won't be held up by the FDA forever...
I assume that most of you, because of necessity, have already implemented the "new" strips but just in case you were waiting for official word, you can find it here it's entirety.
Insulet has posted a link to updated information.
Diabetes Tech News: Medtronic Launches First-Of-Its-Kind mySentry™ Remote Glucose Monitor
Medtronic announces mySentry and I rejoice. Their new innovation does sound familiar...
mySentry Allows Caregivers to See Real-Time Insulin Pump Information and Glucose Trends from Another Room
MINNEAPOLIS – January 4, 2012 – Today, Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE:MDT) announced U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval and U.S. market launch of the first-of-its-kind mySentry™ Remote Glucose Monitor, which allows a parent or caregiver to monitor from another room a patient’s MiniMed Paradigm® REAL-Time Revel™ System. The remote glucose monitor also marks the launch of a new category of Connected Care solutions that will provide people with diabetes and their caregivers convenient options to access their diabetes management information.
Perhaps more then any other chronic dieses, management of day-to-day diabetes lends itself to cutting edge technology. While I'm always grateful for the advancements that have already been made, I'd like to see more and see it faster.
Even if you don't use a Medtronic device (Arden uses a DexCom CGM) this news is fantastic. Wireless technology like this is sorely needed and Medtronic's announcement will serve us all well, spurning other manufacturers to move forward as quickly as possible so not to be left behind. It is also a signal to other companies that the FDA is allowing clearance for technology such as this. That knowledge will make it easier for smaller companies to get into the game. Many device manufacturers are smaller and less profitable then you may imagine and they can't afford to get trapped into a protracted submission process with the government.
I love the FDA saying yes, I love Medtronic trying and I look forward to finding out what is next - please just don't price us all out of when your products come to market.
Medtronic's complete press release is at this link.
ps. It's time to let Insulet give us their smaller pods FDA - I mean really... which ever device lobbyist has you holding this up (my supposition)... they've gotten their monies worth, time to think about the people again.
Sanofi U.S. announcement: iBGStar Glucose Monitor received FDA clearance
Press release snippet:
December 7, 2011 - Sanofi U.S., together with its partner AgaMatrix, announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted 510(k) premarket clearance for the iBGStar™ Blood Glucose Monitoring System, the first and only FDA cleared blood glucose meter that directly connects to the Apple® iPhone® and iPod touch®, seamlessly integrating accurate blood glucose monitoring into the lifestyles of people with diabetes. The iBGStar™ is already available in Germany, France, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Italy.
The compact iBGStar™ glucose meter, when plugged directly into the iPhone® or iPod® touch, quickly displays results immediately after testing on the full-color touch screen via the iBGStar™ Diabetes Manager App. iBGStar™ also can be used alone to measure blood glucose levels and results can be synchronized to an iPhone® or iPod® touch at a later time.
The iBGStar™ Diabetes Manager App has a range of features that allow users multiple ways to analyze their glucose patterns over time. Patients can record and track readings, carbohydrate intake and insulin doses if taking insulin. Scorecards show individual test results and are color coded so that high and low blood glucose results can be more easily identified. The ‘Share’ function enables users to select specific data to send as an e-mail to their healthcare professional. The application can be downloaded for free from the App Store.
The entire press release from Sanofi can be found att his link.
I've never used this device but I think that it's FDA approval is a fantastic sign for things to come. We are an iPhone family and Arden's meter is contained in her OmniPod PDM. We do however carry another meter with us and I must say that my interest is peaked. I hope that the iBGStar's FDA clearance marks the beginning of us being able to more easily keep track of BG data on the devices that many of us carry everyday. Currently, tracking and managing BG data is far too difficult. Perhaps other manufactures will take note and find a user friendly way of incorporating their products with today's technology. I think that it's imperitive that we all keep up with the changing state of diabetes care!
Do you think that having iPhone integration and the ability to easily track and share your BG history will tempt you to switch from the meter that you currently use to manage your type I diabetes?
You can learn more about the iBGStar at - http://www.ibgstar.us/