An old saying states that the eyes are the window to the soul, but looking into someone’s eyes can also reveal their blood sugar levels. It might even be possible with smart contact lenses. Scientists at Stanford University and the Pohang University of Science and Technology in South Korea have developed a contact lens that continuously tracks the wearer’s blood sugar (POSTECH). Only one brave human and diabetic rabbits have been used to test the lens so far. According to researchers, the clinical trial outcomes thus far demonstrate that the lens is equally accurate as a traditional glucometer.
By utilising a porous hydrogel that better absorbs tear fluid, researchers from Stanford and POSTECH were able to get around some of the issues that other researchers faced. The porosity of this hydrogel has been precisely tuned to match the fine film of tears that covers the eye. The integrity of the lens could be in danger if the hydrogel is too porous. The number of tears necessary for measurement cannot be absorbed into the lens because it is not porous enough. They seem to have nailed it. Hyaluronic acid-stabilized gold and platinum nanoparticle catalysts that were non-corrosive were also investigated.
How do smart contact lenses function? Tears and hydrogel interact chemically, generating electricity that is sensed by circuits in the lens as a result. The strength of that electrical current indicates how much glucose is present in the fluid of the wearer’s tears and, as a result, in their blood. An app on a mobile device can be used to view these measurements after they have been wirelessly transmitted there.
A huge demand exists in the US for quick and accurate glucose monitoring. The American Diabetes Association estimates that over 120 million Americans have diabetes or prediabetes. This number keeps increasing, with 1.5 million new cases of diabetes being diagnosed each year—a rate that has more than doubled over the previous 20 years.