JDRF: Level 4, 80-84 Chandos Street, St Leonards NSW 2065 Tel 02 9966 0400 Fax 02 9966 0172 WWW
Media Release
EMBARGOED UNTIL 11am 5th FEB 2010
New technology protects diabetic kids from overnight coma
Groundbreaking research shows that an “artificial pancreas” can maintain healthy blood
glucose levels and dramatically reduces the risk of potentially deadly hypoglycemia.
Insulin-dependant diabetics
rely on a
daily balancing act of calculating the right amount of insulin and
blood glucose they need to survive. Too little blood sugar and they risk slipping into coma or seizures.
Too much and they face lifelong health complications such as blindness, heart and kidney failure.
Dramatic blood sugar drops, or hypoglycemia, have immediate and often devastating consequences and
have an enormous impact on both individuals and families living with type 1 diabetes.
“Without a doubt, the biggest worry for parents of kids with type 1 diabetes is that their child will
have a dangerous low blood sugar emergency during the night,”
says Australian endocrinologist
and hypoglycemia specialist Professor Tim Jones. “Research has also shown that major fluctuations in
blood sugar can have a significant impact on the cognitive, psychological and behavioural development
of children with type 1 diabetes.”
JDRF researchers
have made a significant step towards removing
this risk. Published today in The
Lancet, a Cambridge University team have completed a trial of an automated management system, able
to predict and prevent blood sugar fluctuations.
The system being tested combined a widely available insulin pump and continuous glucose monitor with
a
computer algorithm to calculate the appropriate amount of insulin required in different circumstances. It
was fitted to children with type 1 diabetes who were kept overnight at hospital for monitoring.
Results showed that the children using the system spent twice as much time in a healthy blood
sugar range and were significantly less likely to have dangerous hypo attacks.
According to lead scientist Dr Roman Horvorka, these results show that existing devices, can be coupled
with the newly developed algorithm
to
improve glucose control in children and significantly reduce the
risk of overnight hypos. This is
a significant improvement on current management practices
and
will soon be moved into wider clinical testing in the home environment.
Commenting on the research, JDRF Research Manager Dr Dorota Pawlak says “An automated diabetes
management system, or artificial pancreas, is the Holy Grail for people who are living with insulin-
dependant diabetes.”
“While an artificial pancreas isn’t a cure, it will help to significantly reduce serious diabetic health
complications whilst also reducing the burden on individuals and families that live with the constant fear
of blood sugar fluctuations.”
Ends
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