Contact lenses for diabetic patients

A breakthrough technology will help diabetics measure blood glucose without having to draw blood every day.

New technology helps diabetics do not have to inject blood for blood glucose - Photo: Blogspot

When blood sugar changes, contact lenses change color. This is the work of bioengineering professor Jin Zhang and colleagues of the University of Western Ontario in Hamilton (Canada). This technology uses tiny nanoparticles attached to contact lenses made of hydrogels, a super absorbent polymer. These particles react with the glucose molecules present in the tears, creating chemical effects that discolor.

According to the researchers, the technology has applications other than biomedical devices, such as food packaging. The thin membrane made of nano-composite that can prevent food spoilage by preventing oxygen, CO ₂ and moisture from entering the food, by measuring pathogen infection. Other nanoparticles may also increase the biodegradability of packaging.

Prior to Professor Zhang's work, Dr. Chris Geddes of the University of Maryland in the United States in 2005 also studied a type of contact lenses capable of sensing blood glucose levels. To create a blood glucose sensitivity, Professor Geddes and his associates bind the boronic acid molecules to the glass. These molecules will align with the blood glucose levels in the thyroid gland and produce a fluorescence response. An attached handheld device emits a bluish light in the eye and measures the light intensity of the reaction, allowing the patient to know the amount of glucose in the blood.

In 2001, the US Food and Drug Administration approved a system called GlucoWatch. It is a compact device worn on the wrist that can stimulate a tiny electric current on the skin and suck out some fluid between cells to check blood glucose.