Optical device will aid testing of diabetics

Practitioners are set to benefit from a simple non-invasive optical handheld device for testing the blood glucose levels in diabetes sufferers. It is intended to replace the painful inconvenient current method of taking a blood sample.

Designed for use by optometrists and other healthcare professionals, the portable landline phone-sized unit sends a short flash of light into the patient's eye, measuring the returning beam to determine glucose levels in the anterior chamber of the eye.

A second pocket-sized battery-powered blood glucose meter is also in the developmental stages and designed to be carried around by patients during the day for easy and non-invasive testing.

Berkshire-based Lein Applied Diagnostics, the company responsible for creating the devices, has completed successful clinical tests of its advanced prototypes and has secured further investment from Seven Spires Investments, a member of Thames Valley Investment Network (TVIN). Successful tests have also been performed on volunteers with contact lenses.

The company said the funding would enable it to accelerate the development programme for its devices, which are anticipated to come on to the market in around two years.

'Both devices work in exactly the same way and provide a non-invasive alternative to the current practice of taking a blood sample from a finger prick test, which is painful and inconvenient,' said Lein director Dr Dan Daly.

'The portable unit will also be ideal for domiciliary care as diabetes predominantly affects the elderly,' he added.

An estimated 1.8 million people currently suffer from diabetes in the UK, compared to 170 million worldwide. These figures are expected to increase dramatically due to an ageing population and a general increase in obesity rates, the company added.