Continuity: The Earring That Monitors Glucose Levels For Diabetics

For those with diabetes, managing it is a 24/7 problem, one that Frederique Sunstrum, a Ph.D. honors student in industrial design at the University of New South Wales, has developed a continual solution for. It’s a device called Continuity, and it eliminates all the hassle and discomfort of monitoring diabetes.

As of today, the life of a person with diabetes involves pricks from needles and continually needing to check blood sugar levels throughout the day. It’s a ball and chain and a lot of pain.

In the future, continuity could provide a life without injections and time-consuming blood checks. It’s a non-invasive (no needles!) continuous glucose monitoring and delivery system that does all the monitoring work itself. It grants the user freedom and flexibility.

In the Australian Good Design Awards, Continuity was a Gold Winner! It was also one of the top national James Dyson Award winners and has now become a finalist for the international James Dyson Award. The James Dyson Award is a contest designed to uncover the most exciting inventions from recent engineering students, ones that find a much-needed solution to a global problem.

With Continuity, people with diabetes wouldn’t have to worry about their blood glucose or pause their activities to check levels. The innovative system seamlessly combines all the constituents of diabetes management. It does so through the combination of three separate technologies:

• A wearable chrome “earring” glucose sensor with vibration alert
• Wireless connectivity that sends data to cell phones, a doctor, and family
• An insulin-mist pump, much like an inhaler

How It Works

• The user wears the earring. It’s a unique ear device that utilizes GlucoWise’s technology to monitor glucose levels 24/7. One side of the earring transmits radio-frequency waves through the earlobe, clearing the skin layers. Doing so generates a clear picture of the blood cells for the sensor to read the glucose levels on the other side of the earlobe.
• If there is a fluctuation in blood sugar levels – even during sleep – the earring vibrates and alerts the user. It also sends an alert to an app on their phone. The app sets off an alarm to make sure the user gets notified, just in case they are sleeping and don’t feel the vibration of the earring.

  

The delivery device is a handheld oral spray (aerosolized insulin) that is much like an asthma inhaler. The insulin spray gets absorbed through the inner lining of the cheeks.

• The spray device uses technology from Generex Biotechnology, and Sunstrum designed the inside pump. It has a digital display showing dosage and child lock features that require a slide-lock to open and a fingerprint scan to enable spraying.
• The glucose canister within the spraying device is replaceable when empty.
• Both the earring and the spray communicate through low-energy Bluetooth to an app that sends information to healthcare professionals as well as family members of choice.

The Hope For Independence

Many people end up hospitalized because they can’t deal with the procedure of pricking their fingers for blood several times a day and continuously needing to inject themselves with insulin.

For some, managing diabetes involves additional costs, whether it’s the cost of Jardiance 25mg or other medications required to maintain stable glucose levels. Staying on top of these daily routines and expenses can make a significant difference in health outcomes.

Sunstrum said:

“Diabetic individuals are desperate for non-invasive ways to monitor and treat their diabetes as this will enable independence, reduce the possibility of complications, and maximize the quality of life. I am hoping to spread the word of the importance of non-invasive devices and their role in helping millions of people around the world take control of their lives once more.”

The methods for both the monitoring of glucose levels and its delivery system are non-invasive, making Continuity a notable solution for one of today’s biggest problems. Diabetes is an increasing worldwide epidemic. It affects 1 in 10 individuals (415 million people worldwide) every year. All these people currently have to stop what they’re doing up to 12 times a day to check their blood sugar manually. Imagine the freedom this system would bring to all these people!