Insulin Device Companies' New Mantra: Real Simple
This article was originally published in Start Up
Executive Summary
Companies developing devices for diabetes have to ask a question that companies in other medical device fields don't: what about the users, the people with diabetes? How will they use the device? Because in diabetes care, management of the disease is left up to the patient, who is asked to self-test blood glucose levels, self-administer insulin by injection, and pay attention to diet and exercise. Acknowledging that the patient is the single most important contributor to success in diabetes care, start-up companies have set out to make insulin delivery easier. With a focus on ease of use as a clinical advantage, start-ups are offering new insulin delivery devices for two distinct markets: the full-featured (but easy to use) insulin pump for Type 1 diabetes, and the disposable, simple insulin patch/infuser for Type 2.
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Cellnovo's Mobile Health Approach to Diabetes Care
Cellnovo is working smack at the intersection of two of the hottest areas in medtech: diabetes and mobile health. Aiming to be the iTunes of diabetes care, the firm hopes to transform today's piecemeal management of the disease. The private company has developed an integrated platform designed to ease the burden for patients with type 1 diabetes, their physicians and their families. Cellnovo's system integrates a blood glucose meter, an insulin pump, and a simple interface that makes it easy to gather and share among all interested parties the many parameters associated with diabetes care: diet, level and frequency of blood glucose readings, insulin delivery profiles, degree of physical activity, and health status, for example. Indeed, because success in type 1 diabetes care heavily depends upon the compliance and adherence of patients to numerous daily tasks as they try to live normal lives, the disease is a good test case for the first end-to-end, patient-centric solution.
Cellnovo's Mobile Health Approach to Diabetes Care
Cellnovo is working smack at the intersection of two of the hottest areas in medtech: diabetes and mobile health. Aiming to be the iTunes of diabetes care, the firm hopes to transform today's piecemeal management of the disease. The private company has developed an integrated platform designed to ease the burden for patients with type 1 diabetes, their physicians and their families. Cellnovo's system integrates a blood glucose meter, an insulin pump, and a simple interface that makes it easy to gather and share among all interested parties the many parameters associated with diabetes care: diet, level and frequency of blood glucose readings, insulin delivery profiles, degree of physical activity, and health status, for example. Indeed, because success in type 1 diabetes care heavily depends upon the compliance and adherence of patients to numerous daily tasks as they try to live normal lives, the disease is a good test case for the first end-to-end, patient-centric solution.
Hygieia Inc.
An urgent need exists for a simple and cost-effective way to support insulin therapy, mainly for people with type 2 diabetes, in between physician check-ups. Hygieia Inc. plans on addressing this need in a big way with its patient- and clinician-friendly Diabetes Insulin Guidance System (DIGS), designed to replace commonly used glucose meters that simply provide blood sugar readings. Hygieia's DIGS device is designed to support diabetes patients' glycemic control by providing them with with simple dose-by-dose insulin recommendations.