From monitors to foot creams, new diabetes gizmos take off

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American Diabetes Association annual meeting is the site of a dizzying array of new diabetes products.

 

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CLINICAL PRACTICE

From monitors to foot creams, new diabetes gizmos take off

A wide array of new products for diabetes patients made their debut at the American Diabetes Association annual meeting in New Orleans. Here's a sampling:

• BD Consumer Healthcare introduced the BD Logic Blood Glucose Monitor, a finger-test system that is the first in the United States to deliver results in five seconds and require only a 0.3 mcl blood volume. The small sample size allows use of the BD Ultra-Fine 33 lancets—the thinnest available (at just 33 gauge) and a lot more comfortable to use.

• BD Consumer Healthcare also introduced the BD Latitude Diabetes Management System, targeted to insulin-dependent diabetes patients. The blood glucose monitor is built into the one-piece case, which has compartments for BD Test Strips, new 33-gauge BD Ultra-Fine lancets, and an insulin pen.

• Bayer introduced the Ascensia Breeze blood glucose meter, designed for convenience and simplicity. Single-function buttons and ergonomic design make the meter desirable for patients looking for ease of use. The unit is cleared for alternate-site testing.

• LifeScan's new OneTouch UltraSmart is a glucose meter and logbook in one. Factors that affect diabetes, such as food, medications, and exercise, can be tracked with ease to spot trends and help patients manage their disease.

• LifeScan also took the wraps off OneTouch Diabetes Management Software version 2.0, to be used in conjunction with the entire family of OneTouch Monitors. This comprehensive tool helps identify blood glucose trends, as well as track factors such as blood pressure, cholesterol, and hemoglobin A1c that also affect disease status.

• Animas Corp. announced the launch of its ezManager Plus, an Internet-based diabetes management system that gives patients access to a database of more than 3,000 foods, including items from fast-food restaurants, and the capability to download blood glucose and pump history and share the data with healthcare professionals.

• Novo Nordisk exhibited the Novolog FlexPen and Novolog Mix 70/30 FlexPen 3-ml prefilled syringes, which have a single-dose step setting for ease of use, providing an alternative to conventional vial and syringe administration.

• Pelikan Technologies unveiled Pelikan Sun, the first fully automated, electronically controlled, and self-contained lancing system. The one-step, one-button device controls lancing depth to reduce pain, and the self-contained lancet disk eliminates the need to handle (or even see) a lancet.

• Strategic Science & Technologies kicked off HealthiBetic Foot Cream, a transdermal L-arginine formulation that improves blood flow and temperature in the feet of diabetes patients with foot complications.

• TheraSense introduced a new diabetes management system called FreeStyle Tracker, a special module that can be inserted into a Handspring Visor personal digital assistant. The unit monitors blood glucose using a 0.3-mcl sample, which can be taken from alternate sites and automatically stores results in an electronic logbook.

• The FreeStyle Flash, which will be available later this year from TheraSense, is purportedly the world's smallest glucose meter. Despite its size, it promises to be feature-packed, with a fast testing time of about seven seconds, a backlit panel display, and lighted test strip port for testing at night or in dark conditions. It also has four customizable alarms to remind patients that it is time to test.

• Deltech and TheraSense have collaborated to develop the first all-in-one insulin pump and blood glucose meter, the CozMore Insulin Technology System. The CozMonitor glucose meter attaches to the back of the Deltec Cozmo pump and communicates with it through an infrared port. After a glucose level is displayed, the pump provides an appropriate list of actions. Both blood glucose results and insulin delivery data are stored in the insulin pump's history log.

KT Porter

 

KT Porter. From monitors to foot creams, new diabetes gizmos take off. Drug Topics Jul. 21, 2003;147:HSE 27.

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