non invasive meters

[colinhann]

My sister has been a diabetic for some years and has become very unstable recently with very high and low blood sugar levels coming on very quickly..leading to collapses..she is increasingly unable to know what is happening as the levels change so quickly even though she tests herself frequently with up to date blood glucose meters. I want to know more about non-invasive meters..do they work and where can I find more information. I have trawled the net and am not a lot wiser.I met an American recently and she had an implant of some kind that measured her levels on a dial..like a watch ..so she could always keep an eye on her levels without having to test all the time.Is there anything out there like that which means my sister can see immediately what her levels are with even a warning device available.Thank you for any help you can give

 

[DiabeticGeek]

There are various continuous glocose monitors manufactured, although I don't think they are commonly available on the NHS. If your sister were to stand any chance of getting one then it would have to be through a diabetes specialist (if anyone has managed to get one on the NHS then please post). Failing that, then I am sure you could get one privately, but they are likely to be expensive. I haven't seen any UK prices, but in the US I have seen them advertised for well over $1,000 for the monitor (with $35 for consumables that last three days). If you are interested in this route then your sister would need to ask her doctor to refer her to a private diabetes specialist.

I met an American recently and she had an implant of some kind that measured her levels on a dial..like a watch ..so she could always keep an eye on her levels without having to test all the time.

She might have been talking about the notorious "glucowatch". This was a neat piece of kit that you wore, like a watch, and it measured glucose by pressing a gel pad against the skin. However, although this was a really nice idea it had lots of problems. In short they were horribly expensive, unreliable and caused skin rashes. Because of this not many people bought them, the company that made them went bust. and they are no longer available.

 

[laura123]

Hi,

My dad works for abbott laboratories and has told me about a device they make called the freestyle navigator. It has been availible in america for years and was recently brought to england last september. The machine is a pager like machine you can keep in your bag and it communicates to a small sensor under the skin. There is no need for wires. This machine gives you continuous readings and beeps to let you know when your blood sugar is too high or low.
Unfortunately I live in Scotland where it is apparently not availabe, so the "diabetic clinic" say anyway.

Look on the abbott website and type in freestyle navigator

http://www.abbott.com/global/url/home/en_US

Hope this helps
Laura.

 

[DiabeticGeek]

My dad works for abbott laboratories and has told me about a device they make called the freestyle navigator.

I have no doubt that they are available privately in the UK, but they aren't cheap - has anyone heard of them being available on the NHS?