Making life with diabetes better. We’re on it.  

Microneedle patch to greatly transform Type 1 diabetes monitoring. 

For millions of people with Type 1 diabetes, monitoring glucose and ketone levels is a cumbersome daily task. Now, there’s an easier future in sight. A new breakthrough in microneedle technology promises to replace painful finger pricks and inconvenient urine testing strips.

3M+ Canadians

or 8.8% of the population, have been diagnosed with diabetes (Statistics Canada) 

$75M

is how much our health care system spends treating diabetes annually (Diabetes Canada) 

$875K USD

awarded to Waterloo's IDEATION lab to develop continuous ketone and glucose monitoring for the prevention of diabetes (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International)

Receive macro news in a micro newsletter.

Quick knowledge, big insights! Subscribe to the Innovation Insider for health, climate, tech, physics and human behaviour innovations in under two minutes.

* indicates required
 

I'm super optimistic we can help save lives and improve the quality of life for people with Type 1 diabetes.

Dr. Mahla Poudineh

Dr. Mahla Poudineh in the labratory

Dr. Mahla Poudineh is an assistant professor in Electrical and Computer Engineering and the director of the IDEATION Lab. Her research interests include real-time bio-sensing approaches for detection of small molecules, using microneedle and microfluidic-based integration devices for therapeutics and diagnostic purposes, and implantable micro-devices for cancer treatment.

Close up of diabetes patch showing the micro needles

Micro marvels

Microneedles are small, minimally invasive devices designed for delivering medicine or sensing biological and chemical reactions. These tiny needles, typically ranging from hundreds of micrometers to a few millimeters in length, pierce the outer skin layers for precise medication administration or fluid extraction. Microneedles cause less pain than traditional needles because they don't reach the skin's pain receptors, making them more user-friendly and easier to adopt. (Science Direct)

Health futures

Rapid technological progress is reshaping healthcare on a global and personal level. Waterloo is harnessing our expertise where health, society, technology, and entrepreneurship converge, collaborating with partners on groundbreaking innovations that propel health and healthcare systems forward for everyone.

Read on to discover more ways Waterloo is on it.

sunset over clouds

Improving better climate prediction →

Discover how one Waterloo researcher is driving the solution.

lie detector polygraph

Discerning fact from fiction →

Explore how the research can help information consumers separate sense from nonsense.