Artificial Pancreas Current & Future Use

Current Use

The artificial pancreas is currently only being used under close monitored clinical trials. The University of Virginia has conducted clinical trials on the artificial pancreas along side with many other researchers in various locations. These developments were funded by the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, which is also known as JDRF.  The clinical trial that included an overnight stay, proved to be “incredibly exciting” according to Dr. Aaron Kowalski, a researcher at the University of Virginia, because the “success in an outpatient, real-world setting is an enormous and encouraging milestone.”(University of Virginia’s artificial pancreas real-world success for diabetes patients.)  The successes in these clinical trials allow for JDRF to continue with the ongoing research that the University of Virginia is conducting.  Dr. Aaron Kowalski said “there are no fully automated insulin delivery systems available on the market, and that's why JDRF has made accelerating the development and delivery of these technologies a priority,” (University of Virginia’s artificial pancreas real-world success for diabetes patients.). He also stated that “This latest research milestone is incredibly exciting and shows us that the first generation of an artificial pancreas is no longer a dream." (University of Virginia’s artificial pancreas real-world success for diabetes patients.).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QNYI3ofxbJ8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlNsak3UWWg

Potential Life Enhancer

 The artificial pancreas is a potential life enhancer for patients with diabetes. It would allow patients to not have a worry about future life complications that result from bad maintenance in blood glucose levels for diabetics. The complications that may result include blindness, kidney failure and amputations. The artificial pancreas being in its final stages of clinical trial this fall gives hope to diabetics to look forward to an easier life, giving them an opportunity to focus on their personal lives, relationships, education and making a difference in the world by not needing to worry about what their blood glucose reading is at constantly. The artificial pancreas has the potential to benefit diabetic lives that are constantly affected by such a disease.

Artificial Pancreas: Advantages & Disadvantages

The Artificial Pancreas is a wirelessly linked Continuous blood glucose monitor and dual hormone pump that work together to maintain the blood sugar levels in a diabetic. Here are a few of my own personal advantages and disadvantages of this future technology. More information about the artificial pancreas can be found at http://jdrf.org/ 

Advantages:

1. Less of a burden on Diabetics to maintain blood glucose levels.
2. Blood glucose levels maintained lessen future costly complications for Diabetics
3. Potential life enhancer for patients with diabetes
4. The continuous blood glucose monitor predicts against low and high blood glucose levels
5. One step closer to a complete cure for diabetics

Disadvantages: 

1. Not a complete cure for Diabetics
2. The artificial pancreas is two external devices that must be carried & connected at all times 
3. Difficult for athletic diabetics who play contact sports to maintain device connected 
4. Still need to supplement the machines and maintain them
5. Artificial Pancreas potential has the life threatening risks of the patient with diabetes if it were to malfunction