A new approach to improving the control of type 1 diabetes

Abstract

Blood glucose management in Type 1 diabetes is crucial in preventing several diabetic complications. Blood glucose management is a complex task requiring diabetics too carefully administer the correct dosages of insulin by taking their blood glucose levels, food consumption, exercise, stress, illnesses and several other factors into account. Improved bolus calculation greatly aids in controlling blood glucose levels within a tight range. This study investigates how the ets-concept (Equivalent Teaspoons Sugar-concept) can be used to develop products to calculate insulin boluses. A cellular phone based software application was developed to calculate insulin boluses using the ets-concept. This product was tested in a clinical trial. A blood glucose characterization procedure was also developed to characterize the blood glucose response of a Type 1 diabetic to carbohydrate ingestion and insulin administration. The characterization procedure was used during the clinical trial to characterize patients in order to customize the bolus calculation products for the specific diabetic user.