Practitioners will soon be able to offer a new contact lens that uses hologram technology to enable diabetics to monitor their glucose levels without the pain or inconvenience of taking blood samples.
The non-invasive system, which has been created to allow diabetics to monitor their glucose levels more often leading to better blood sugar control, is expected to be available to opticians within three years and to be priced 'roughly the same as existing contact lenses'.
Scientists at Bath University have been awarded a £120,000 grant from the Cambridge-based technology company Smart Holograms and the Department of Trade and Industry to develop the lens device over the next two years.
Changes in glucose levels in a patient's tears alter the wavelength of light reflected by a hologram in the contact lens which is detected by a small device which is held up in front of the eye to take a photo and record results on a small screen.
Senior lecturer in organic chemistry and Royal Society Research Fellow, Dr Tony James, who is overseeing research, said that it was the most sensitive system being developed for diabetics.
'When it comes to the market it will make the lives of many millions of diabetics simpler, safer and less painful,' he said.
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