Diabetes Dateline
Amira Medical's New Blood Glucose Testing Device Now Available
The Food and Drug Administration has approved Amira Medical's
new AtLast Blood Glucose System, now available for consumer
use. The AtLast system allows patients to accurately monitor
their blood glucose levels without the pain of sticking
their fingers to get blood samples.
The system is the first to contain both a lancing device
and a blood glucose meter all in one. It uses a unique,
disposable test strip to obtain blood samples from the forearm,
thigh, or upper arm, areas that have fewer nerve endings
and are therefore less sensitive than
fingertips.
A clinical study among patients with diabetes found that
they preferred arm/thigh testing to fingersticks and that
90 percent experienced less pain or no pain with the AtLast
system.
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Inhaled
Insulin
Pfizer Inc and Hoechst Marion Roussel AG have announced that they have
entered into agreements to manufacture insulin and jointly develop and
promote inhaled insulin worldwide.
The first major, multicenter clinical trials successfully using the
new inhaled form of insulin to treat the two most common types of diabetes
were reported on last summer at the American Diabetes Association's 58th
Annual Scientific Sessions.
Under the agreement, Pfizer and Hoechst said they would construct a jointly
owned manufacturing plant in Frankfurt, Germany.
Anything that could reduce or eliminate the need for multiple daily insulin
shots would be welcome news for people with diabetes. Insulin normally
cannot be taken by mouth because the pills are digested in the stomach,
which renders them useless as a hormone.
By minimizing the need for injections, the user-friendly option of inhaled
insulin can broaden the use of insulin in patients with type 1 and type
2 diabetes.
Phase II studies have demonstrated that inhaled insulin is as effective
as regular injectable insulin and that inhaled insulin results in better
control for patients who are not well controlled through oral agents.
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FDA
Approves Home Use of Laser for Diabetes
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a laser device that
people with diabetes can use in place of the traditional lancet to draw
blood for monitoring blood sugar.
The device, which is manufactured by Cell Robotics Inc. of Albuquerque,
New Mexico, is called the Lasette. It is a portable, battery-operated
device that uses a YAG laser to pierce the skin, a nearly painless means
of drawing blood for glucose testing. The device can be used in the home
after patients have received a prescription and instruction from their
health care provider.
Currently, many people with diabetes must prick their fingers with a
lancet once or twice a day to monitor blood sugar levels. This can be
especially difficult for children.
According to the FDA, "Clinical testing has shown that adequately
trained patients can perform finger pinpricks with the laser device as
easily and accurately as with lancets."
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