diabetics
Latest
Sanofi-Aventis debuts iBGStar blood glucose meter for iPhone
It's not the first to announce a blood glucose meter that connects to an iPhone, but Sanofi-Aventis has just rolled out what's surely the most streamlined solution to date. Unlike the LifeScan Bluetooth glucose meter shown off during Apple's iPhone OS 3.0 preview event way back in March of last year, this one connects directly to your iPhone (or iPod touch), and it can even be kept permanently attached with the aid of a custom (and fairly stylish) case. Otherwise, it functions just as you'd expect, with it able to display all the basic info on the device itself (it can also be used without the iPhone), and a ton more info on the accompanying app. No word on availability just yet -- that still hinges on FDA clearance -- but the device is "expected" to run somewhere in the neighborhood of $80.
Researchers receive grant to develop color-changing contacts for diabetics
Contact lenses that act as a glucose monitoring system for diabetics aren't exactly a new idea, but it looks like a group of researchers from the University of Western Ontario might be a bit closer to making them a reality, as they've now received a $200,000+ grant from the Canada Foundation for Innovation to further develop the technology. The secret to their contacts are some "extremely small" nanoparticles that are embedded in the hydrogel lenses which, like some similar systems (such as those pictured at right), react to the glucose molecules in tears and cause a chemical reaction that changes the color of the lenses -- thereby informing the wearer when their blood sugar is too low or too high. What's more, the reseachers say the same basic idea could also have a wide range of other applications beyond glucose monitoring -- for instance, being used in food packaging to indicate if the food is spoiled or contaminated. [Thanks, Yuka]
