Summary
Diabetes mellitus is a chronic disease caused by a violation of metabolic processes due to a lack of insulin synthesis and an increase in blood sugar (WHO, 2021). There are two types of diabetes, which include Type I and Type II. Type I manifests itself with insufficient insulin production, and type II-with the body’s immunity to insulin (Jannoo et al., 2017). Diabetes of pregnant women is also distinguished. Diabetes therapy is aimed at reducing glucose levels, normalizing metabolic processes, and preventing complications (Jannoo et al., 2017). The doctor’s instructions should be followed throughout your life; they mainly include the observance of a special diet.
Proposed Solution: Diabetes Tracker
The proposed diabetes tracker is a device that combines the functionality of an electronic BGL tester and a personal assistant to help patients stick to their diet plan. The base device is a non-invasive BGL tester that transmits its measurement results to the digital assistant component. The assistant can be a standalone device or an application installed on a regular smartphone. In the first case, the device has a touch interface and a form factor similar to a smartphone or smaller.
The main functions of the assistant are to register the user’s BGL measurements using the internal clock (in the offline version) or the phone’s clock settings (in the app version). This data can be transmitted to the patient’s healthcare provider, displayed as a graph, and used to power the device’s power system. This system can be used to guide the patient in his or her dietary choices. The assistant also contains a database of common meals and their respective properties for managing DM, such as nutritional value and glycemic index. When selecting a meal, the user can view this database and see immediate suggestions based on their last BGL measurement and the time since it. In addition, when registering a BGL measurement, the device can suggest appropriate meals or snacks based on this and the user’s previous history. If an insulin injection is needed, the device can also inform the user and suggest the appropriate dosage. Finally, it can suggest proper nutrition based on the same data.
Similar Devices, Goals, and Feasibility
The components of a set of diabetes trackers are common parts of managing diabetes. Fully non-invasive devices are an outstanding new development that is expected to hit the market in the coming years (Hoskins, 2021). Diabetes management software is also available, similar in functionality to the tracker’s assistive device, such as the Accu-Chek mySugr app (Accu-Chek, n. d.). However, these devices and applications do not integrate; the software typically requires manual input of BGL measurements.
In its most basic form, the proposed diabetes tracker is a combination of existing solutions with additional integration and supporting software (DiaMonTech, n.d.). Thus, combining the two parts into one set has the advantage of a more user-friendly approach, which avoids the user errors common with manual input. Compared to a smartphone app, a standalone assistant device can be used for more specific functions that require specialized hardware components, such as ketone counters.
Since the diabetes tracker is a completely new device that uses the previous technologies at its core, combining them into one, its cost may be slightly higher than the cost of products already available on the market. But by overpaying a little for this tracker, the patient also buys a lot more convenience and efficiency.
References
Accu-Chek (n. d.). MySugr App. Web.
DiaMonTech (n. d.) Technology. Web.
Hoskins, M. (2021). ‘Noninvasive’ glucose monitoring for diabetes: Where is it now? Healthline, Web.
Jannoo, Z., Wah, Y., Lazim, A., & Hassali, M. (2017). Examining diabetes distress, medication adherence, diabetes self-care activities, diabetes-specific quality of life and health-related quality of life among type 2 diabetes mellitus patients. Journal of Clinical & Translational Endocrinology, 9, 48-54.
World Health Organization (2021). Diabetes. Web.