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