At one of the official banquets, Theresa May presented herself in a dress revealing her shoulders and a mysterious patch on her shoulder. What is this?
The Prime Minister of Great Britain suffers from diabetes. This small device that immediately caught the attention of journalists and reporters is a sensor that helps control blood glucose levels. To check the sugar concentration, just put a special reader against the sensor, which will read the result in a few seconds. Data collected during such measurement can be sent to a mobile phone or computer.
Thanks to this control, the patient does not have to prick the finger each time and use a traditional glucometer. It is a great convenience especially for those patients who need to control glucose levels several or several times a day.
The device used by the British Prime Minister works perfectly with an insulin pump. Thanks to instant and very simple measurements, the sensor automatically sends a signal to the pump, which adjusts the appropriate dose of insulin.
Although such sensors are also present on the Polish market, not every patient can afford such convenience. The devices are not refunded and you have to pay for it out of your own pocket, what is worse, the sensor has to be replaced every two weeks. Thus, the cost of monthly therapy is about PLN 500.
Diabetes, which is what?
Diabetes mellitus is a chronic disease caused by an impaired insulin secretion. Hormone deficiency causes impaired glucose metabolism in the body. First of all, the penetration of glucose through cell membranes into the interior of cells is too little, activating its various intracellular transformations, as well as erroneous participation in protein synthesis and inhibition of fat breakdown processes. Glucose is a substance that is essential in the body, it is the main, readily available source of energy. Hence, disturbances in its transformations have systemic consequences. Diabetes – due to its prevalence and the observed ever increasing frequency – is now considered a social disease.
Diabetes largely depends on age, environment and genetic predisposition. The risk of developing diabetes increases significantly with age. However, recent studies show that the disease is increasingly affecting children between 6 and 12 years of age.