ASIC Chips for Glucose Monitoring
Diabetes is a metabolic disease in which your blood glucose level is too high. The condition impairs the body’s ability to process blood sugar. In the United States alone, there are about 30 million people diagnosed and undiagnosed of diabetes. It is a widespread disease affecting millions of people worldwide. Patients with diabetes rely on medication, diet, lifestyle, and blood glucose monitoring for better diabetes management.
The use of needle pricks and glucose strips is the usual approach to monitor blood sugar. Although popularly used among diabetic patients, the approach is painful and requires devotion to continuously monitoring sugar levels.
Researchers are constantly looking for more of a convenient approach such as the use of an ASIC chip for blood sugar monitoring.
A Bit About How it Works
Medical and health researchers are developing an ASIC chip controlled blood glucose monitor that is implantable for continuous blood sugar measurement. Senseonics, Inc., of Germantown, Maryland, has developed a Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) system that will constantly monitor glucose levels of diabetic persons up to 90 days.
The specifications for this ASIC design for control and analysis have to meet the measurement and analysis of reflected light, memory, wireless interface, low voltage requirements, and medical certification. This ASIC controlled blood sugar monitor can be implanted at the upper arm or the wrist of the patient.
Technologies
For the wrist application, a special watch is designed to power the sensor every 3 minutes. The sensor then starts to measure the blood glucose level and sends back the data to the wristwatch or smartwatch, displaying the data on the monitor.
A specified bandage with Bluetooth interface is created for the upper arm use. Real-time glucose measurements are then sent to the patient’s mobile phone. The data can also be sent from the smartphone to the patient’s physician for review.
The sensor must be implanted by a professional health care provider. The use of ASIC chip technology for blood sugar monitoring replaces the painful and inconvenient pricking. With the use of this tiny fluorescent sensor implanted in your skin, diabetic patients can now get accurate and painless blood sugar monitoring.
Even when you are doing physical activities or the sensor gets compressed; it remains to deliver precise data. Also, its transmitter is water-resistant, rechargeable, and removable which means you can take it off to recharge while doing activities like taking a shower.
For a maximum of 6 months, the sensor must be replaced afterward. In addition to these features, the sensor sends data every 5 minutes which you can check from your smart device.
Future for ASIC Chips
As technology progresses, advancement in medical and healthcare is also expected. Studies on wireless wear glucose levels for diabetic patients have been conducted.
The use of an ASIC chip to monitor blood sugar levels can help diabetic patients manage their illness with ease and confidence. It gives diabetic patients the freedom to carry on with their daily activities without the need to do the usual prick and strips twice or more in a day.
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