An implant around the size of two packs of playing cards can wirelessly charge its battery and restock insulin painlessly. The team that made the device says it could revolutionise the treatment of type 1 diabetes.
The device weighs 165 grams and is designed to be implanted inside the abdomen, on the outside of the stomach. It constantly measures levels of insulin in the blood and releases doses of the hormone via a small catheter as needed. The internal battery can be charged wirelessly by a device outside the body.
The insulin is refilled using magnetic capsules that can be swallowed. These聽connect聽to the device聽from the other side of the stomach lining, where聽a syringe pokes through the stomach to drain them聽into an internal reservoir before being released to pass naturally through the digestive system. The reservoir holds enough insulin to last the average person with diabetes聽a month, according to the team.
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at Scuola Superiore Sant鈥橝nna in Italy and his colleagues tested a prototype implant on pigs, where it effectively regulated insulin levels in the blood. The researchers hope that the device will get certification for human tests in time. They say the implant could make treatment for type 1 diabetes far less invasive but also more effective.
鈥淲hen you inject with a syringe you have a delay, by the time the insulin is absorbed and you see the result on the glucose level on the blood,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut when you inject insulin inside the body, absorption is really fast. This delay should be minimised and you have a better system, a real-time system.鈥�
The prototype has Bluetooth so it can communicate data and status updates to smartphones or laptops outside the body.
Current implants designed to dispense insulin have a battery that lasts one or more years but then needs replacing via surgery. These also require insulin to be restocked with carefully directed injections that pass through the skin and into a port on the device during monthly hospital visits. External devices exist but these require a cannula passing through the skin, and carrying the device makes some activities difficult, such as swimming. They can also be prone to infections and leaks and can be painful.
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