Alcon Licenses Google Lens Technology
Looks like Novartis owned Alcon saw something promising in Google's lens technology.
Looks like Novartis owned Alcon saw something promising in Google's lens technology.
From New York Times: Joe Jimenez, the chief executive of Novartis, acknowledged in an interview that many previous attempts to develop noninvasive glucose tests had failed, noting that the company previously tried — and failed — to develop its own glucose-monitoring contact lenses several years ago.
What makes this case different is the involvement of Google’s engineers, he said. “One of the biggest hurdles was miniaturization, and that’s one of the biggest benefits that Google X brings,” he said. “This is a set of engineers that are really doing incredible things with technology.”
While the glucose-monitoring lens has gotten most of the attention, Mr. Jimenez said he was also encouraged by another lens in development that would work much like autofocus on a camera, by helping the eye focus on near objects, then readjusting when the user looks at something far away. He said that product was not as far along in development, and that both lenses were still early in their development.
Read the entire article here
Sudden Needle Anxiety
Please, don't turn to me when my daughter looks scared of a needle and say, "Huh, I would think that because of all of the times she gets stuck, this wouldn't be a big deal"
"What is that"?
Those words surprised the hell out of me when Arden spoke them almost one year after we switched from injections to an insulin pump. I'd personally stuck Arden with tens of thousands of needles in those first two years and I would have bet my life that, even though we hadn't used one in almost a year, she wouldn't have forgotten what a syringe looked like or what it was for.
Arden was diagnosed with type I diabetes at the age of two in the summer of 2006 and we switched to insulin pumping in February of 2009; for a solid year after the switch we never needed an injection.
Since that day, I'd call Arden's relationship with needles one of tolerance. That is, she doesn't like them, she doesn't hate them. We inject insulin sporadically, she gets an annual blood draw at the Endo and once in a great while... she needs dental work. Never a problem. Arden chats through blood draws, winces a bit in the dentist chair and aside from wanting to pick the injection site, doesn't much mind a periodic insulin injection.
Until recently.
A few months ago Arden had two teeth removed in preparation for braces and the procedure required her to get an injection in her pallet. The procedure went smoothly and without incident. Last month her dentist discovered a surface cavity on one of her molars (I blame overnight juice drinking), the cavity was so small that the dentist scheduled a thirty minute appointment and told us that we would't need all of the time.
I cruised into the dentist office without a care in the world, like I said, this sort of thing is never a problem but Arden did not want to get out of my car. Actually, I'm understating this - she was refusing to get out of the car, she held the door in a death grip and began to tell me how she has been dreading this visit all week. I could see that she was not joking, this visit had been weighing heavily on her mind. We talked our way through the fear (I thought) and went inside.
I never could have guessed what would happen next.
When she sat in the chair she was nervous but seemed resolved to go through with it. The doc (Great guy) prepped her mouth without issue but when he picked up the needle... Arden brought her legs to her chest wrapped her arms tight around them and refused to allow him near her mouth. She protested, argued and even screamed at the poor man. Everyone's best efforts couldn't change her mind. We adjourned, rescheduled and tried again two weeks later.
Same result.
After the second attempt, I made an appointment with a dentist who uses laughing gas and that appointment went fine. In the interim however, Arden had her quarterly Endo appointment and it was blood draw time.
Now maybe I'm a simpleton but I never saw a parallel between what happened in the dentist office and a blood draw. Needless to say, I was unprepared when Arden went on the offensive when the nurse at our Endo office brought out the syringe.
I let our dentist take the helm and followed his lead even though my parenting instinct was to be a little more forceful with the situation. I found myself standing in his office thinking, "I know that my father would have held me still and let the dentist work - is that what I should be doing?". The dentist was thoughtful, kind and cerebral. Arden was resolute. I was not sure how to handle this new situation.
When Arden protested similarly in our Endo office I immediately thought, "I have to nip this in the bud... my diabetic daughter can't spend her life making threatening gestures when nurses approach her with needles". I initially stood back to see how the nurse wanted to handle the situation, she wasn't taking any shit and honestly I thought, "Thank you". I'm all for kids having a say and I don't want to scar her but this was nuts and needed to be stopped before Arden felt like this was her new normal. The nurse made it clear that she was taking blood today, I backed her play and a few minutes later it was finished... I found myself wondering if that was the move we should have employed at the dentist. As it turns out, when Arden was faced with the reality of having a second nurse hold her still, she liked that idea even less than getting a needle. She choose between the evils and held still for her blood draw. It was uneventful just as they have always been and when it was over, Arden saw that she was overreacting. I am very happy that the nurse pushed her to comply and that I was clear-minded enough this time to follow my gut.
I'm sharing this story today for two reasons. First, I want you to know this may happen and that we handled it, but that it took a little bit of 1976 parenting to get us there. Second, I really wanted to say this next bit in context.
Please, don't turn to me when my daughter looks scared of a needle and say, "Huh, I would think that because of all of the times she gets stuck, this wouldn't be a big deal" and really don't say, "I thought she'd be tougher since she deals with diabetes every day".
Needles suck, they hurt and they are scary even if you get stuck with them a lot. If you're looking for a comparison how about if I punch you in the face ten times a day for, lets say ten years, and then see if you don't still flinch on the first day of year eleven... when I draw my fist back.
People who deal with extra life challenges deserve support, not overly critical analysis. You're good people and I can see that you mean well, but for the love God think before you speak - please.
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Happy fourth of July!
Human GI Cells Retrained to Produce Insulin
I don't post nearly all of the stories that I read about cure research, but I found this one to be particularly interesting and wanted to pass it on.
I don't post nearly all of the stories that I read about cure research, but I found this one to be particularly interesting and wanted to pass it on.
Human gastrointestinal cells from patients were engineered to express insulin (fluorescent green) in the lab. (Image by Columbia University Medical Center.)
Excerpts from a Columbia University Medical Center press release:
By switching off a single gene, scientists at Columbia University’s Naomi Berrie Diabetes Center have converted human gastrointestinal cells into insulin-producing cells, demonstrating in principle that a drug could retrain cells inside a person’s GI tract to produce insulin.
The finding raises the possibility that cells lost in type 1 diabetes may be more easily replaced through the reeducation of existing cells than through the transplantation of new cells created from embryonic or adult stem cells.
After seven days, some of the cells started releasing insulin and, equally important, only in response to glucose.
You can read the entire press release here
Good Stuff
So, on this day, I want to thank diabetes... Sure it still owes us about 4,000,000,000 more good moments before I can even consider calling us even, but I won't forget this one.
I've sat through playdates, school trips (Oh the mind numbing school trips), countless practices and untold birthday parties while on BG patrol. I do my best - because I fear that the knowledge would make me crazy - to not wonder where all of the other parents go when they drop their kids, and run.
My time as a wallflower in Arden's life decreases each year as she takes on more and more responsibility for her type I diabetes care. Playdates are now managed via text message and I'm attending fewer parties, but I still stay at sporting events to help oversee her blood glucose levels.
During the early part of June Arden's 9 year old all star softball team won their tournament, ending softball for the summer. Well, it would have ended her season, you know, if she hadn't then tried out and made the 10 year old team. Since the older girls practice longer and more frequently than the younger girls, I've been spending two hours a day watching Arden practice. That is a lot of hours spent sitting on an aluminum bleacher, a literal pain in the ass brought to yours truly, by none other than diabetes.
But the greatest thing happened the other day, and honestly I wouldn't have been there if it wasn't for diabetes. So I'm writing this blog post in recognition of the fact that diabetes brought something positive into my life.
Arden plays third base on her 9 year old all star team but on the 10's she mostly plays right field. Prior to making the 10's, I would have describe Arden's ability to catch a fly ball as "not bad". That is, if the ball was within a reasonable radius of her, she could catch it most times. This is a skill that she has had to work harder on now that she is playing the outfield on a regular basis. I watched her struggle for the first week of 10's practice to track and catch these higher, harder balls. She never gave up but never-the-less, she was struggling. Then suddenly a few days ago, it all began to make sense to her and I was there when she figured it all out. I was actually looking at her when something that her coach said 'clicked' for Arden. It may seem like a little thing, but as a parent you don't get to see that moment very often. I was able to watch the lightbulb turn on over her head, I saw her smile when she first believed that she understood, and I witnesses the jubilation when she put her discovery into practice. I was only there because I was watching her blood glucose, because my life doesn't allow me to drop and run.
So, on this day, I want to thank diabetes... Sure it still owes us about 4,000,000,000 more good moments before I can even consider calling us even, but I won't forget this one.
-- Arden's team plays their first game tonight at 6 pm
