Artificial Pancreas Liberates Young Diabetics From The Disease

In a ground-breaking trial done by researchers at Cambridge University and published in The Lancet, scientists have developed artificial pancreas to regulate blood sugar in children with type I diabetes.

Currently, patients usually controls their symptoms of diabetes using an insulin pump and avoid injections altogether. But even the use of pumps does not eliminate the finger prick blood test as this the only way to check blood sugar levels and calculate the right dose for the pump.

Cambridge University researchers created the artificial pancreas, a device that uses a sensor to measure glucose levels and pump the correct dose of insulin into the body overnight- effectively taking insulin control out of the patient’s hands. The system calculates the right amount of insulin to deliver based on real-time glucose readings from the body – comparing it to the performance of the regular pump.

The research methodology recruited a total of 17 children and teenagers with Type 1 diabetes for the study, which is detailed in medical journal The Lancet. Testing was done under different conditions – such as after the children had eaten a large evening meal or done early evening exercise. Both activities can increase the risk of low blood sugar episodes known as hypoglycaemic attacks, or “hypos”.

Results showed that the new device held blood glucose levels in the normal range for 60% of the time, compared with the regular pump’s 40%. The device also stopped blood glucose from falling below the 3.0mmol/l level – defined as significant hypoglycaemia – compared with nine hypos that occurred in the control groups.

According to Prof Jones, a paediatric diabetes specialist based at Perth’s Princess Margaret Hospital, keeping blood sugar levels stable for longer would deliver broad benefits for a diabetic child. “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,” he said.

The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation’s (JDRF) research manager Dr Dorota Pawlak also called this development ground-breaking and said: “This trial is the first real proof that existing management technology can be expanded to make a dramatic difference to the lives of people living with type 1 diabetes and also their carers.”

Written by Snigdha Taduri for Biomed-ME