Temporary tattoos are great for individuals who want to share a message without the permanence of a real tattoo, but they may soon serve a greater purpose: a glucose testing device for diabetics.
According to findings published in Popular Science, researchers at the University of California San Diego have developed a temporary tattoo equipped with electrodes and a sensor that can measure glucose levels without drawing blood. Considering 8 percent of the world’s population, or about 390 million people have diabetes, the temporary tattoo could be a gamechanger.
How it Works
After eating a meal a diabetic person applies the tattoo to their skin. Once placed on the skin, the electrodes generate a current for about 10 minutes. During that time it draws glucose to the skin, carried by sodium ions. The device then measures how strong the charge of the positive sodium ions is, and uses that information to provide the individual with a glucose estimate.
Amay Bandokar, a nanoengineering graduate student at UCSD, who worked on the study, said the science behind the device is fascinating.
“The concentration of glucose extracted by the non-invasive tattoo device is almost hundred times lower than the corresponding level in the human blood,” Bandodkar said in a news release. “Thus we had to develop a highly sensitive glucose sensor that could detect such low levels of glucose with high selectivity.”
Although testing is still in its initial stages, researchers say they have tested the device on seven non-diabetics users and found that the glucose measurements were consistent with typical finger-prick testing.
Bandokar also noted that the initial devices are very cost-effective, but it’s still uncertain when they may be available for purchase.
“Presently the tattoo sensor can easily survive for a day. These are extremely inexpensive–a few cents–and hence can be replaced without much financial burden on the patient.”
Bandokar concluded by saying that future temporary tattoos will be equipped with other features that will revolutionize how doctors and patients control glucose levels.
“The readout instrument will also eventually have Bluetooth capabilities to send this information directly to the patient’s doctor in real-time or store data in the cloud.”
Dr. Silverman comments
This is a wonderful innovation. Instead of pricking yourself every few hours, diabetics can now wear a non-invasive patch for a whole day and still accurately monitor their blood sugar.
It is great to see what can happen when technology and healthcare combine to help patients.
Related source: Popular Science