Diabetes is a persistent problem in U.S. healthcare. Also, it is one of the areas where experiments take place regularly. The latest news here is about what could reshape the future of diabetes. Cambridge scientists have successfully trialed ‘an artificial pancreas.’ The artificial pancreas or the device will function based on an algorithm.
The Cambridge university developed the algorithm. The target group is patients who have type 2 diabetes.
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Blood sugar levels rise too high as a result of type 2 diabetes. Typically, the release of insulin regulates blood sugar levels, but type 2 diabetes interferes with insulin synthesis. Therefore, the usual treatment involves changes in lifestyle, diet changes, and exercise along with medicines.
Yet, an artificial pancreas may address the issue. For patients with type 1 diabetes, the researchers have demonstrated in the past that an artificial pancreas powered by a similar algorithm is beneficial.
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The researchers evaluated the artificial pancreas’s performance using various metrics. The first was the percentage of time patients‘ blood sugar levels were within the desired range of 3.9 to 10.0 mmol/L. On average, two-thirds (66%) of the time was spent within the target range for patients utilizing the artificial pancreas.
“Many people with type 2 diabetes struggle to manage their blood sugar levels using the currently available treatments, such as insulin injections. The artificial pancreas can provide a safe and effective approach to help them, and the technology is simple to use and can be implemented safely at home,” informs Dr. Charlotte Boughton, University of Cambridge. Boughton co-led the research.